


Demigod Dreams

by BobSaysHelloFromNL



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Kid Percy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-20
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-05-09 23:44:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 48,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5560471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BobSaysHelloFromNL/pseuds/BobSaysHelloFromNL
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>16 year old Luke has a dream. Actually, he has several dreams. But all of them are about a certain 9 year old boy with sea green eyes. Every night he discovers something new about him. Some things make him smile, but others cause emotions such as fury or pity to rise. No matter what he dreams of, he can’t help but start caring for the boy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

The first time it happened was when Luke was 16. It was the most uneventful dream he ever had of him. He only saw the eyes. The bright sea green eyes that had seen far too much for a boy his age. At the time Luke didn't know what age that was yet.  
Seems like a boring dream right? Well, it was. But Luke couldn't help but keep staring into the eyes. He kept staring until he was sure that if someone asked, he could draw the exact same eyes. But then again, it wouldn't look as good on paper as it did in real life. It wouldn't look... alive enough. It may sound stupid, but he swore that he saw different shades of sea green that refused to stay put. He concluded that this boy had the most ADHD eyes ever.  
But it wasn't just the color of the eyes that amazed him. The other half was the emotion hidden underneath. The boy looked sad, lonely, afraid and hurt. It made Luke feel sorry for him, even though he didn't know what caused those emotions. But there was something in the eyes that surprised him even more than the sadness.  
It was hope. Hope, loyalty, kindness and determination. He didn't understand how the boy could feel al those emotions at once. It also made him curious. Curious to learn more about the boy. He wanted, maybe even needed to know how this boy managed to deal with all the darker emotions, and still be able to laugh. He swore to himself that he would find out. He didn't know how, but he would.  
And he did find out. The dreams didn't stop. Every night he would dream of the boy, and every night he would learn something new.


	2. The Myth of Perseus

Luke did everything he could to make sure he saw the boy again. He kept thinking of the eyes, he described them in his head, he even prayed to Morpheus! Maybe that was a bit desperate, but hey, he was curious.

However, he had some mixed feelings about going to sleep that night. What would he do if he didn't see the boy again? Luke didn't even know for sure that he existed. Sure, demigod dreams can be important visions, but he once dreamt of Grover in a wedding dress. Not exactly a life saving dream.

If he just had a name, than he could find out if the boy was real. But that would mean he had to sleep. Luke mentally scolded himself. Here he was, unable to sleep because of a pair of eyes.

He resolutely closed his eyes, demanding them to stay closed till it was morning.

 

This time he saw a lot more than just eyes. He saw a little boy with sea green eyes and black hair. Also in the room was a woman who was probably his mother. They were in what looked like the boy's room, with him lying in his bed and the mother sitting next to him.

"Can you tell me a story, mom?" The boy asked his mother. "I'm not tired." Luke walked closer to confirm that indeed, this was the same boy as last night. And it was, but he looked... younger.

His mother sighed. "Promise me you'll go to sleep after? You have school in the morning."

The boy nodded enthusiastically. "I promise. Please, mom?" he pleaded with puppy eyes that even Luke have to admit were irresistible. So of course she caved in.

"Okay, fine." She took a moment to think of a story. "Let me tell you a story about your namesake Perseus."

He pouted. "I'm Percy, not Perseus." Luke made myself comfortable at the foot end of Percy's bed, knowing he was invisible. Silently cheering because he now knew the boy's name. First name, at least.

His mother ignored his complaint. "Long, long ago, there was a boy named Perseus. He was the grandson of a king, and a son of Zeus. You remember who that is, right?"

"A meanie." Percy quickly answered so she would continue with the story. Luke had to agree with him that the king of Olympus wasn't that nice.

His mother laughed quietly. "Before Perseus was born, the king got warned about his grandson... being mean to him in the future." Luke scoffed. He knew the story; Perseus was destined to kill the king. Figures that Percy would hear the child friendly version.

"And that's why the king send them away. The mother who was also his daughter, and the son." It was clear that she was struggling to make the myth less... shocking. It's not easy to explain to a little boy that the king locked them up in a wooden chest and cast them into the sea. Of course they survived, so it wasn't really that important.

"They ended up by a fisherman, whose brother was the king of the island they lived on for the next years. The boy grew up till he was no longer a boy. The island king grew a liking to Perseus' mother, but Perseus didn't like him."

"Just like me and Smelly Gabe?" Percy asked. Luke wondered who Gabe was. A friend of his mother, probably. So Percy doesn't like one of her friends.

She pursed her lips. "Maybe a bit. But the story isn't about Gabe right now. The king wanted Perseus gone, so he could... kiss the mother. He came up with a plan. He organized an important event, were the guests had to bring him horses. Bu-"

Percy interrupted the story. "Why a horse? And can we also do that? I would really like to have a horse."

"No, Percy. You can't have a horse. Maybe when you're older." Percy's face brightened at the prospect of maybe getting a horse years later. How did he get so excited over such a small thing? Luke wondered.

"Let's continue, or don't you want to hear the story anymore?" That certainly got him to listen, instead of dreaming about a horse. "No, I love the story!" Percy protested.

His mother smiled. "Then try to listen to it." He nodded while zipping his mouth shut. Luke chuckled at that.

"Alright, so the king asked his guests to give him a horse, but Perseus didn't have one." Luke saw Percy opening his mouth, before quickly closing it again.

"The king told Perseus that he had to bring him something else instead." She suddenly stopped talking. Luke figured that was because of what the king asked. Medusa's head. He was curious about what she was going to change it in.

"What did he ask, mom?" Percy asked, before hiding a yawn. Right, Percy was supposed to be sleeping already. Forgot he was just a kid. At least, he is in this dream. How old is he in real life? Assuming he exists...

"He... asked him to take a picture of Medusa's face, and bring it to him." Luke burst into laughter. This version was ridiculously funny. Did they even have cameras in ancient Greece?

Percy frowned confused. "Why?"

"Because... Greek kings were strange. Anyway, Perseus would have to find Medusa first. And to take a picture of her face, he had to look into her eyes. And that, is something that nobody wants to do." She explained to him with a serious look on her face.

"Why?" Percy once again asked.

"Because if you look into her eyes, you will be tickled to death." Luke snorted amused; he never thought he would hear someone say that.

Percy's eyes widened. "How did he succeed then?"

"Perseus was smart, he realized that he didn't have to look into her eyes if she was sleeping. So one night, he snuck into her bedroom, and took a picture of her face. With flashlight of course, otherwise she wouldn't be visible. Perseus returned to the king and his mother. He succeeded and the king didn't kiss his mother." The mother finished. It was a pretty lame ending.

Percy stifled a yawn before looking at her, pleading her to keep talking. "That's all, Percy. The story's finished." She told him.

"No it's not. Not until you say happy ever after." Percy argued. His mother frowned. "It's not a fairytale, Percy. And maybe there's a second story. I can't let him live happily ever after, if he hasn't found a girlfriend yet." Luke certainly agreed on it being to soon to say happy ever after. No demigod receives that after just one quest. Most never got a happy ending.

Percy took his time to think that fact over, before nodding in acceptation. "Fine." He grunted.

His mother smiled and stood up. "Go to sleep, Percy. I'll tell you more next time."

Percy nodded again. "Night, mom." He whispered while turning over to face the door.

"Goodnight, Percy." She replied. She turned the lights of and walked out, closing the door behind her.

As Percy fell asleep, Luke felt himself waking up.

He opened his eyes and looked over at the clock. He was up too early. Closing his eyes again, he thought about his dream. So the boy was called Perseus, like the Greek hero. Maybe he was a demigod?

Luke wondered if he should tell someone about his dreams. If Percy was a demigod, he must be an important one or Luke wouldn't be dreaming of him. But then again, the dream didn't show that he was in any danger, so why take him away from his loving mother?

Luke didn't have a good relationship with his mother; he didn't want Percy to suffer the same fate by locking him up in camp.

There was no reason to tell someone, so why not keep it a secret? At least until he knows more about Percy.


	3. Meeting Gabe

The next day Luke did his best to tire himself out as much as possible. It wasn't that hard since it's a summer camp. He thought that if he were tired enough, he would have a longer dream. Or at least sleep longer. Luke just hoped it works and he didn't fall asleep at the sing-along for nothing...

 

A plain green door opened and Percy came in. "Mom, I'm home!" he shouted. Luke noticed that Percy was older than last time. He looked around ten and had a bagpack slung over his left shoulder. Luke turned away from the door to look at Percy's house. First thing he noticed was that it was small, maybe an apartment? Second thing was the smell; it reeked of beer. Luke was confused, this can't be where Percy and his mom live, his mother looked nice and not like a drunkard. Did something change since the last dream?

Percy walked into another room and Luke followed. It was a kitchen, and sitting at the kitchen table with a beer in his hand was a walrus of a man. Luke saw Percy tense. "Gabe, where is my mother?"

Gabe, it sounded familiar. Didn't Percy mention a guy nicknamed Smelly Gabe that was a friend of his mother? Cause if that's the same guy, he agrees with Percy. He smells.

Gabe emptied his bottle before answering. "Sally has to stay at work, because of you." He stood up, which seemed like a big accomplishment, to get another beer. The empty bottle found a nice place right next to several others. And it wasn't even dinnertime yet.

Percy bit his lip, deciding if he should reply or not. "What do you mean, because of me?"

"If it wasn't for you, her life would be so much easier." He accused. "She has to pay for everything you need, clothes, education and food."

Percy dropped his bagpack on the ground near the table. Don't talk back him, Luke advised Percy inside his head. "Well, I don't see you ever going to work since my mom pays everything." Luke rolled his eyes, he knew Percy didn't hear him, but is it really that hard to keep quiet?

Gabe glared warningly. "I get paid, and you don't even have a job. And with grades like yours, you'll never get a job."

This time Percy didn't respond. Instead he walked up to the refrigerator and took of a note. He squinted hard as he tried to read it, which gave Luke some time to read it himself. To his surprise it wasn't a hastily scribbled note, but a printed one.

**Percy,**

**I won't be home for dinner.**

**Ask Gabe to order a pizza when you're hungry.**

**I can't wait to finally see you in person again.**

**Love,**

**Mom**.

It sounded like Percy's been gone for a long time. Didn't Gabe know that? Luke also came to the conclusion that Percy had Dyslexia too.

Percy scowled and crumbled up the note, putting it in his left pocket. He picked up his bagpack and walked out of the kitchen. But Gabe called him back.

"Well, what do you want?" Percy demanded irritated.

Gabe smirked, and Luke immediately knew that nothing good could come out of this conversation. "I want you to pay me."

Percy scoffed. "No."

"Yes. And you know why you will pay me?" Gabe questioned with a nasty smile. "Because otherwise your mother has to."

Luke fought the urge to punch him, and based on Percy's clenched fists, so did he. Why should Percy's mother need to pay for that drunkard? And only then did he realize who Gabe was. Sally's husband and probably Percy's stepfather, he wouldn't be able to believe that Percy was related to him by blood. Percy's stepfather is a disgusting man, and his mother is nice. Luke wondered how that could've happened.

Percy took some deep breaths before replying. "And what if we both don't pay you? Who will be your cook then? Admit it, you need her."

Gabe just chuckled as if amused by Percy. "No, I don't. She is the one who needs me. If it weren't for me, you would've been homeless. And this is what you'll do to repay me."

"I'm not going to pay for staying in a house with you!" Percy finally exploded. "And you do need her, without my mother to care for you, you'll be long dead. I'm not paying, and that's final."

He tried to leave, but was stopped by one of Gabe's dirty hands grabbing his arm and pulling him in closer. Luke couldn't help Percy, even if he tried, his hands would just go trough them. He had those kinds of dreams before. Helplessly being forced to watch.

"Even if I need her, she needs me too. But you want to know whom we both don't need? Right, that's you." Gabe sneered, his breath probably blinding Percy. "I can easily kick you out now and Sally won't be able to do anything about it, cause she needs me." Luke saw his grip tightening before reluctantly letting loose of Percy.

Percy shakily took a step back, staring at Gabe in disbelieve. "I expect you to pay me by the end of the week. Now, get lost." Gabe ordered him.

For the rest of the day Percy stayed in his room, not having dinner and not seeing Gabe again. He just wasted a lot of time unpacking his bagpack while cursing Gabe, and getting distracted a lot. Luke stayed with him, observing how he couldn't stay concentrated on just one thing. A possible sign of being a demigod.

A few hours later the door opened to Sally who came up and hugged Percy. "Oh, Percy. I've missed you so much."

Percy smiled a genuine smile. "I missed you too, mom." After a while she let go and properly looked at Percy for the first time since entering the room. "You've grown so much since I saw you last." She said and grabbed Percy's arms. He flinched which caused Sally to frown.

"Are you alright?" she asked him worried for his wellbeing.

"Yeah, it's nothing, really." He lied, but Luke knew that she could see right trough it. Still, she nodded, with a slightly disappointed look in her eyes that she quickly covered up.

Suddenly she looked Luke right in the eyes. His breath caught. Can she see him? And with the worst timing ever possible, he woke up.

 

His first thought after waking up was: At least it was a long dream.

The second: Gabe is a jerk.

And the most important one for now: Percy is a demigod.


	4. Blue Food

That day Luke didn't tire himself out anymore, but the other demigods who had sword-fighting lessons with him. He beat them up a little bit more than usual because he was angry with Gabe, and maybe Sally and the gods too.

Gabe because he's mean to Percy. Sally and the gods because they didn't do anything to help Percy.

Of course the gods don't help him, Luke thought bitterly. They never do.

Nonetheless, tired demigods who were blind to that fact surrounded him. Or maybe they just ignored it…

He had to ask someone he could trust what he or she thought about the gods. And maybe he could tell him or her about Percy too. But whom can he trust? Annabeth? Luke frowned. No, she was too young and naïve for that.

Luke wasn't stupid; he knew that there must be enough unclaimed demigods in his cabin who had bitter feelings towards the gods. But he didn't trust any of them enough to keep Percy a secret.

They could just as well turn on him and tell Chiron to send a satyr to collect Percy. At first Luke didn't want to separate Percy from Sally, but maybe he should now that Gabe was there with him.

But was it really better for Percy if he went to camp? Would he just be one of the many unclaimed demigods?

Then it hit him. Silena Beauregard, daughter of Aphrodite. Luke knew she had a crush on him, and she was good in understanding emotions such as love. She would be able to decide what to do with Percy.

Later that day at the campfire Luke sat down next to Silena, surprising the daughter of Aphrodite. "Oh! Hi Luke." She greeted him with a blush.

Luke shot a charming smile at her. "Hello Silena. Can I talk to you in private?"

She nodded hastily and stood up. "Let's go to the beach then."

They walked in silence until the reached the beach and sat down in the sand. "So… Do you want to tell me something?" She asked him shyly. Luke smiled at her, knowing what she was hoping for and that he was going to disappoint her.

"Yes, I've been having dreams lately." Silena frowned in confusion. This wasn't what she was expecting.

"They're about a demigod boy, I'm not sure what age. His name is Percy." Luke continued to tell Silena more about his dreams, not leaving a single detail out.

When he was finished Silena looked thoughtful. "I don't know if camp will be the right place for Percy. If he is going to be an unclaimed camper he is better of at home with his mother who he loves."

"But what about Gabe?" Luke argued. He didn't like that Percy was staying with such a disgusting man as him.

"Gabe doesn't matter. As long as Percy loves his mother, he will want to stay with her. If I were you, I would wait until I know who Percy's godly parent is." Silena advised. "Of course you still have to keep an eye on Gabe, to be sure he doesn't cross the line."

Luke considered her idea. It sounded like the smartest decision and he didn't have any other plan. "So I just have to keep waiting for more dreams. Again." Luke concluded, a little bothered by the thought of sitting around doing nothing.

Silena nodded in agreement.

"Alright then." Luke sighed. "And Silena, could you please swear on the river Styx to keep this a secret?" Sure, he trusted her, but he wasn't stupid enough to risk her telling someone accidently.

She frowned for a moment before swearing. Thunder sealed the oath she took.

"Thank you." Luke said with a smile. "Let's go back to the others."

"I'm telling you one last time, boy. Blue food doesn't exist!" Gabe shouted at Percy. They were both sitting at the kitchen table with Sally in between them. Luke was standing awkwardly next to Percy; he noticed Percy looked a bit younger than before, around 6 or 7 years old. "It does!" Percy yelled disagreeing.

"Enough!" It was the first time Luke heard Sally raise her voice. But then again, he didn't see her very much at all. "Gabe, there is such a thing as blue food. Blue berries for instance."

"See!" Percy yelled in triumph.

But Gabe didn't look happy at all. "Blue food is the stupidest thing I've ever heard!"

"Is not!" Percy protested annoyed with the stinking man.

"Gabe, stop shouting at Percy!" Sally glared at him.

"If he stops talking about things like blue food! Why are you taking his side? I am you husband!" He bellowed and punched the kitchen table making Percy flinch.

"I am taking his side because he is right. Blue food does exist and I will prove it." Sally calmly stated, still glaring at Gabe.

Suddenly Luke's vision turned black and he wondered if this was all he was going to see tonight. But then it returned and he saw a whole table filled with blue food. Not just natural blue colored things, but things like died blue pancakes. Sitting at the table were a grumpy looking Gabe and a smiling Percy. Sally was standing by the oven, waiting for what looked to be a blue cake.

"I told you blue food was real!" Percy enthusiastically told Gabe.

He muttered some things underneath his breath that Luke hoped Percy didn't hear. "Sally, why is the food died blue?" Gabe gritted out between his teeth.

"I told you I would prove it to you." She answered matter of factly. "Now, be quiet and eat your food."

He sighed in defeat. "Tomorrow it will be forgotten, right?"

Sally shrugged with a mischievous grin. "Who knows…"

Again it turned black and another scene appeared before his eyes.

He only just saw a blue birthday cake with the number 9 iced on it with a slightly lighter blue color, before the dark returned again.

He woke up with a smile on his face. The dream may have been a bit pointless, but at least he now knew that Sally still sided with Percy. Percy will be safe at home, as long as his mother is there.


	5. Swimming with Sharks

"Silena! Wait, I want to talk to you!" Luke shouted when he caught her going back to her cabin. He was actually supposed to go back to the Hermes cabin with the rest, but he forgot to talk to Silena about his previous dream. He got so used to keeping it a secret, that it felt weird having to share his dreams with someone. He knew that he didn't exactly promise to tell her everything, but he felt obliged to since she helped him.

The daughter of Aphrodite turned around to face him. "Luke, I'm sorry, can it wait? We both have to go back to our cabins now."

Luke considered waiting a day before running over to Silena. "I just wanted to thank you for yesterday. And tell you that I think you made the right decision."

She smiled brightly at him. "No problem, so I assume Percy is doing well?"

"Yes, he is." Luke confirmed. "Well, I have to get back to my cabin now before they burn it down. See you tomorrow!"

When he turned around he saw the Stoll brothers quickly shoving their hand into their pockets. He frowned but decided to let it slide for now. As long as they didn't prank him, he was fine with it. And if they did prank him, then they would get it back ten times worse. Luke was head of the cabin after all. "Come on Stolls, back to our cabin."

 

Luke was standing in a school bus filled with 9 year olds. But only three of them were important in his eyes. Of course, Percy was one of them, the other two were the boys sitting behind him. They were snickering about something while constantly kicking Percy's seat. Luke noticed that nobody sat next to Percy.

One of the boys leaned forward to whisper something to Percy. Luke shuffled closer to hear what it was. He saw Percy clenching his fists and knew what was coming before it happened. The boy must have said something to anger Percy, because Percy turned around in his seat and leaned over it to push the boy back in his seat.

The boy started to cry, effectively gathering the attention of everyone on the bus. Luke frowned; Percy didn't push him that hard, the boy was making a big deal out of nothing.

"What happened?" A woman who looked to be the teacher ran over to his row. The boy looked up with tears in his eyes and bit his lip, trying to look scared. "Percy." He simply said.

The teacher got an angry look in her eyes, and scowled at Percy. "Well? What did you do to Dave?"

Percy had a disbelieving look on his face. "I did nothing!"

"Yes you did!" The other boy disagreed. "You pushed him really hard!"

"Is that true?" The teacher asked Dave, who has by now calmed down from Percy's 'attack'. He quickly nodded. "Yes, I was just talking to George when he attacked me." Luke looked around the bus, surely someone must have seen the boy bullying Percy. But they were all glaring at Percy.

"Percy, you and I are going to talk about this right after we get back at school. And I will be watching you for the whole trip. Now, say sorry to Dave." The teacher demanded.

Percy didn't really have a choice. "I'm sorry." He mumbled. Luke was pissed of. He also had trouble with school before he went to camp, but that had been about 7 years ago. It was disappointing to find out nothing had changed.

The teacher sat next to Percy for the rest of the drive, so at least the boys couldn't kick Percy's seat anymore. However, Luke didn't know if that was worth having to sit next to that woman. She hated Percy's guts. Luckily it wasn't long before they arrived.

It didn't get much better for Percy when they arrived at Atlantis Marine World. She kept following Percy around, making sure he kept quiet. Luke knew Percy was ADHD, and he assumed the teacher knew too. Still, whenever Percy moved too much for her liking she would grab a hold of him. Of course that meant that Percy did his best to stay in one place, he didn't want that woman to touch him.

But that was much easier said than done. Percy looked far more energetic than usual, and Luke had no idea why. His eyes kept shifting between the sharks swimming bellow them, instead of listening to the guide of the behind-the-scenes-tour. Luke wasn't the only one who noticed that.

"Young man, can you hear me?" The guide asked Percy annoyed that he wasn't listening. "I just asked you to pull the lever you're standing next to."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Percy blushed under all the unwanted attention. He grabbed a hold of the lever und pulled it down, too late to hear the guide shout: "Not that one!"

Luke didn't exactly see what happened next, but before he knew it he was underwater, surrounded by disoriented kids and sharks. I can't die in a dream, he reminded himself and calmed down a bit. But Percy and the others could! His eyes widened and he looked around, hoping that all of the kids could swim and the sharks weren't hungry.

What he saw terrified him. With help of some unknown adults, most children where already being helped out of the water. But that wasn't the terrifying part. Percy was still underwater, surrounded by sharks. "Percy!" Luke yelled, forgetting that Percy couldn't hear him.

A shark swam up to Percy and Luke feared the worst. Why didn't he go to Chiron? Maybe Percy would've been at camp instead of here getting eaten by sharks!

Luke felt an incredible amount of guilt for being responsible of this. Even if the shark was friendly, how long had Percy been in the water? He doubted Percy could hold his breath for long.

He could've thought of many ways this scenario could end, but none of these would involve Percy petting the shark. Which is exactly what happened next. The shark didn't harm Percy, and Percy didn't swim to the surface in panic. Instead he slowly reached out with his hand and touched the shark somewhere above the eyes.

Luke slightly relaxed until the other sharks swam up to Percy. But they also didn't hurt Percy. He realized they were just getting a better look at him.

An idea formed inside his head. Percy's godly parent must be the reason of this. So his father is someone sea-related… Or was it the mother? Is he related to Sally by blood? Out of the corner of his eyes he saw someone diving down, probably to search for Percy. His eyes widened. They couldn't find Percy like that, that would be suspicious. Would the mist be able to cover it up? And would Percy see trough it or not?

Luke couldn't do anything but hope that the mist worked. The diver went straight to Percy, seemingly unaffected by the sharks. He grabbed Percy by the hips and pulled him away from the sharks. Percy turned around to face the diver who gestured to above. He nodded and started swimming to the surface. When he was almost there he looked underneath him and saw that the sharks already parted ways.

He got out of the water and so did Luke. The other kids already received blankets and so did Percy. Some adults were busy calling the parents while others checked on the children. Percy was alone so Luke walked up to him and waited for Percy's mother. At least he didn't get screamed at.

When Sally arrived she looked extremely worried and ran up to Percy. She hugged him and asked him what happened when she let go.

"I pulled the wrong lever." Percy bit his lip. "And I pushed a boy in the bus."

Sally frowned in disappointment. "Percy, you ha-" "Excuse me," the teacher's voice interrupted. "I would like to talk to you, Mrs. Jackson." Jackson? Is that also Percy's last name?

Luke had a hard time deciding if he should stay with Percy, or go with Sally and the teacher. He stayed with Percy for a while, but in the end his curiosity won over his protectiveness. He followed the path that Sally and the teacher went down.

"But I don't understand, he didn't do it on purpose." He heard Sally's voice protest.

"This time he may not have, but he still had no reason to make Dave cry. Another reason to expel him would be his grades. I'm sorry Mrs. Jackson, but I will ask the headmaster to expel him and I'm pretty sure that he will listen."

He tuned out the rest of the conversation. Percy is getting expelled because of this? It wasn't his fault that the bullies angered him and the guide wasn't clear enough on what lever to pull.

Sally and Luke walked back to Percy who was still sitting alone.

"Let me guess. I got expelled because of my grades and this accident." Percy spat out with a scowl.

His mother sighed. "And you made Dave cry. What did he say to you?" Luke stared at her in wonder; she already knew that the blame wasn't on Percy.

Percy bit his lip. "He said some mean things."

"About what?" Sally urged him to tell the whole story.

"About you." Percy glared in Dave's direction.

"Chiron, if I told you I found a son of Poseidon, what would you say?" Luke asked when he next saw the centaur.

"I would say that I doubt he is a son of Poseidon. The oath, remember?" He dismissed the question and walked away.

Luke followed him. "But we already know it's been broken once," he frowned at the thought of Zeus turning Thalia into a tree but then focused on Percy again. "Who says it didn't happen twice?"

Chiron stopped and sighed, turning over to Luke he answered. "You are right that there may be another child of the big three, but you can't say that without prove. If you got prove I'll believe you. Until then, just assume that he is the son of another sea deity." Instead of walking he galloped away and Luke couldn't keep up with him anymore.

Even though Chiron didn't really help him, he now knew two things. Chiron knew something that he didn't. Luke was good at reading people and knowing when they lie or keep something from him. It may be one of the powers he got from Hermes. Shame that he couldn't read minds or something like that…

The second thing he discovered is that camp wasn't ready for a child of the big three. They won't accept the fact that the oath has been broken again.

Percy can breath underwater. The only god with a cabin that has powers like that is Poseidon. So either Percy stays in Hermes' cabin and stays an unclaimed outsider (or maybe claimed but without a cabin), or he will be an outsider and have a whole cabin to himself.

Luke had to keep waiting and gather prove of his parentage. Maybe he could go to Chiron again when the time was right.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he wondered why he put so much effort into this. He never met Percy in real life. This isn't just curiosity anymore, is it? And what was the purpose of him getting these dreams? Why not someone else? There must be a demigod who can help Percy better. And so far Percy didn't need any help; even if he did, Luke can't help while he is dreaming.

Maybe he understood the dreams wrong. Maybe Percy wasn't the one who needed help, but he was. Before the dreams came he had started to think of camp as some sort routine, it became boring. He had doubted if he really wanted to stay there for the rest of his life.

To be honest, he wanted to run away and start over again. Away from his busy cabin and the silly camp-activities where he would always win. Then he dreamed of Percy, and he forgot all about it. But now it was back. And he didn't know if he wanted to stay at camp.

He was almost certain that Percy was supposed to help him decide. He didn't believe in coincidence, the dreams started the night after he contemplated running away. But one thing wasn't clear to him yet: Was Percy going to keep him at camp, or show him that he could find a real home somewhere else?


	6. Snake Strangling

Luke promised himself that he would try to look for the underlying message that each dream held. Unfortunately, he wasn't so sure that there was an underlying message to be found. That meant he would most certainly break his promise at some point, but still, maybe it would help him understand why the dreams kept returning.

He had been so sure that Percy was supposed to help him, but it was just an assumption.

"Luke!" He heard Annabeth call out. He quickly finished his battle and turned around to see her running up to him. "Annie, what's wrong?"

"Chiron wants to see you in the Big House." She informed him.

Luke tensed. Was this about Percy? "Alright," he nodded and then turned to his cabin. "Continue without me."

"Oh, wait, I forgot that he asked for Travis and Connor too." Annabeth remembered.

He relaxed slightly, nothing out of the ordinary. The Stolls just pranked someone and Chiron wanted him to punish them, or make sure they won't do it again. They never listened.

"You heard her," He told them. "Let's go."

They walked in silence, there was no need to ask what the Stolls have done because Luke would hear it all over again when they saw Chiron. And another reason why he didn't have to ask them what they did was because he already saw it. The Ares cabin was freshly painted pink.

 

The pre school was buzzing with hyperactive toddlers. Luke counted 40, but there was a big chance that he counted some of them twice or missed someone. Two teachers tried to take care of them all, and Luke had to give it to them that they did a pretty decent job. No serious fights, no crying children, and no broken windows. He started searching for Percy.

"No, that's mine! Give it back!" He heard a girl yell at someone else, probably talking about something that wasn't really important. "Look at what I've drawn!" A boy proudly showed something to his teacher. Luke didn't pay attention to the toddlers that didn't look anything like Percy. He almost thought he found him when a boy with green eyes and black hair slipped on a piece of paper with a stick figure on it. But he didn't have the right eyes, so he kept searching.

'Black hair and brown eyes… Black hair and blue eyes... Black hair and green eyes… Black hair and blue eyes, wait, I already got that one...' Luke groaned, how was he ever going to find Percy. Knowing Percy, he wouldn't stay in just one place, so he could've walked past him a couple of times already. 'There, black hair and sea green eyes!' He ran over and was disappointed with what he saw. It wasn't the right shade of sea green, more green-blue than sea green, which actually didn't make sense at all. Still, Luke was sure that it wasn't Percu since it was a girl…

With a sigh he sat down next to another black haired toddler. Maybe if he just waited here that Percy would run past him. He looked over at the drawing of the boy at his left side. It was a blue fork. He scoffed, weird kid. The boy started drawing something in the background and at first Luke didn't know what it was. But then he realized it was a simplified version of the sea. A horizon with some wrinkles and fish.

"Give me blue." A girl with brown hair walked up to him.

The boy looked up, and turned his head away from Luke to look at the girl. "What? Why?"

She rolled her eyes. "Cause I need it."

"But I like blue." He protested. Luke sighed, was he also like that at the age of five?

The girl frowned and pouted. "Be nice to me. Or I will tell the teacher you did bad."

"I don't wanna share the blue. You can have the others, I want blue." His grip on the blue marker tightened, as if afraid she was going to pry it out of his hands.

The girl stomped of, and Luke knew that she was truly going to tell on the boy. He shook his head; he should start looking for Percy again. The boy had already continued drawing and he scanned his surrounding, trying to find the right eyes. He stood up, getting tired of waiting for Percy to show up. He would just walk around again. Percy had to be in this dream, right? Or maybe that's the underlying message, that Percy is hard to find… He snorted, that's just plain stupid. No way that's the reason for this dream.

After walking trough the entire room without any results he once again saw the boy who drew a fork. He had drawn something new on the paper, still using blue. Maybe because he liked the color, or maybe because he was too stubborn to hand it over to the girl… Whatever it may be, he still had the blue marker. But that wouldn't be for long, the girl returned with a teacher. The teacher looked really tired, which Luke could understand.

"Percy, please give her the blue marker. It's Jane's turn now." Luke's breath caught in his throat. Wide eyed he kneeled down next to the boy, and sure enough, his eyes were the right color. Sea green eyes and black hair… found him. He had been sitting next to him and not noticed anything. Luke had a strong urge to face-palm.

Percy pouted and complained. "But I need it."

"But she needs it too. Hand me the marker." Percy did so with a sigh, mumbling something underneath his breath. "Good boy." He patted his head like he was some kind of dog and handed the marker to Jane. She ran away with a grin.

"But what can I do now?" Percy sadly asked his teacher.

"You can use another color." He suggested.

Percy yawned. "Boring."

"Or you go to sleep, you look pretty tired." The teacher said with a kind smile. "Come on, I'll go with you."

They stood up and the teacher carried Percy to a bed in the corner. There were already some other toddlers. They were all sleeping, or at least had their eyes closed.

"Try to sleep." He told Percy with a soft voice.

Luke sat down on the empty bed opposite of Percy. Percy made himself comfortable in his bed but kept shifting. Luke had a strange feeling about this, like something was going horribly wrong. Percy opened his eyes with a confused look on his face. He lifted his blanket up and his eyes widened. Luke stood up alarmed by Percy's reaction. He looked under his blanket and saw a long, thin snake with brown scales on Percy's leg. His heart stopped for a moment before realizing that Percy couldn't die now, he had seen him alive and well in the present. Or at least he thinks it's the present.

So that meant that Percy would survive this. Luke doesn't have to worry. Although he can still get hurt badly… Luke hoped that Percy would run away immediately and warn his teacher. That would be a smart thing to do. So of course Percy stayed where he was and even reached out to the snake.

For a moment Luke thought he was going to pet the snake like he did with the shark, but that is not what happened. Percy grabbed the snake with two hands and tried to strangle it. Luke frowned, no way that a toddler could do that, even if it's a demigod.

Then he remembered something, there was one toddler that did the exact same thing and succeeded, the famous Greek hero Heracles. That didn't really increase Percy's chances. The snake fought Percy of, trying to slither away. It hissed in warning, but he closed its mouth with one of his hands.

Luke watched in disbelief and slight awe as slowly the snake's movements died down until it completely stopped moving. Percy really did it, he strangled a snake to death with bare hands.

 

He was pretty sure that he found it, the underlying message. Percy is strong enough to care for himself. He is not the one who needs help, Luke is. But now that that question is answered, a new one rose up. Who is sending him these dreams?


	7. Dreams Hurt

"I've gathered you all here to ask for a favor." Luke started the meeting. He had asked some of his closest friends to go to Zeus' Fist at 5 o'clock. He had yet to tell them why. He looked around satisfied that everyone had showed up. "I would really appreciate it if you could ask everyone you know about someone with powers over dreams."

His friends looked confused, except for Silena. "Do we get to know why?" Alabaster asked him a little suspicious. Ethan agreed.

He shook his head. "Not yet. You'll have to trust me on this one."

"Do we get something in return?" Travis questioned.

"Yes," Luke had already expected that they would ask him that. "I will owe you something. Not too big, of course. For example, letting you of the hook for a prank you pulled."

"I'll do it." Annabeth told him, loyal as ever.

"So will I." Not so surprisingly, Silena said, she knew why he needed the information after all.

He smiled in thanks.

"We'll help you too, just imagine what we could get away with if you owe us." Connor said while grinning manically.

Luke rolled his eyes, a little worried about what will come from being indebted to them. It will be worth it, he reminded himself.

"I'll see what I can do." Chris answered shortly. Luke nodded in understanding at his half-brother. He didn't really have much reason to do it, but he is his friend so he will try.

"I'm in!" Alabaster decided, earning some weird looks for his enthusiasm. "What? It's not like I've any other plans. And of course it will come in handy if our cabin leader owes me one."

"He's got a point there." Ethan thoughtfully said. "Alright, I'll help."

Luke sighed in relief that all his friends would help. Well, not all his friends, but the ones he trusted most.

 

The minute Luke opened his eyes he knew that something was different. The colors he saw were a little odd, and he couldn't see far because heavy mist blocked his sight. From what he could see, he was still in New York. The streets were as crowded as usual, and again, he couldn't find Percy.

He started walking, surprised that he could feel it when others bumped into him. A flash lighted the whole sky up, and almost immediately the sound of thunder shook the ground. It had also started to rain, though the mortals didn't seem to notice it at all. Luke turned around to see if Percy was somewhere behind him, but got blinded by the rain.

He pushed a way through all the people, trying to find somewhere dry. Before he could find one, a black creature ran past him and jumped over a car. He hastily turned around to follow it, knowing for sure that it was headed for Percy. Luke soon realized that he wasn't going to keep up, yet he kept running. Another flash of light, and this time he saw that it was near the Empire State Building that came in his limited sight.

This dream was utterly confusing, but he had to find Percy. Brushing his by now completely soaked blond hair out of his face he kept running until he heard a scream from somewhere on his right. He changed directions and followed the sound.

"Percy?" He shouted, forgetting that it was just a dream. Another black creature came out of nowhere and crossed the road, this time Luke was able to recognize it as a hellhound. He instinctively reached for his sword, not minding the fact that he didn't have it before.

Again, he followed the monster, but what he didn't expect was to be hit from behind with a baseball bat. Luke's head hit the pavement hard, and he had to force himself to stand up again. When he did, he saw two cyclops smiling cruelly at him, one of them holding the baseball bat. The other cyclops didn't have a weapon, but was intimidating nonetheless.

Fortunately, Luke had enough experience with fighting monsters. Unfortunately, he didn't exactly have time for this, especially if the cyclops just kept standing there, not knowing what to do next. He rolled his eyes and quickly stabbed the weaponless one, stepping back to not get hit by the other one. Luke slashed at the hand holding the baseball bat, and the cyclops screamed in pain. He let the baseball bat drop, but was now very angry. He was joined by the first cyclops, who had miraculously not turned to dust yet.

One of them jumped at him and he dodged it by diving to the left. He once again landed on the ground. He rolled over to stand up and stabbed the one who had tried to tackle him in the head. It vaporized.

The other cyclops had picked up the baseball bat and swung it at his head. Luke ducked in time, but couldn't avoid the second blow aimed for his chest. Not wanting to see the stone ground up close again, he grabbed a hold of the baseball bat, not letting go of his sword. The cyclops didn't like it, but was strong enough to hold him in the air while swinging wildly against walls.

Luke started to doubt his decision to grab on because the wall wasn't much softer than the ground.

He tried to hold on with just one arm while he extended his sword arm. The cyclops was out of reach, except for his arm. But Luke knew that if he slashed at the arm, he would fall and the cyclops could easily kill him just by standing in him. So unless he could kill the monster even before he hit the ground, his sword was useless. Thinking fast, he took a big risk. He waited for his opportunity to come, and it came after another few walls. The monster raised him higher than before and Luke sprung into action. He sliced at the cyclops' arm and again he dropped the baseball bat with a scream. This time though, Luke was also falling. While being in mid-air he swung his sword at the head of the cyclops, decapitating it. The cyclops disintegrated into golden dust and Luke fell on the ground, landing not so smoothly on his ass.

He wanted to sit there for a while, still dizzy from his fight, but he had yet to find Percy. Was he being attacked by hellhounds? His blood ran cold at that thought. He had to go. Now. He forced himself to get up and run. Thunder struck not so far from him and his instincts told him to go to the place of impact.

He heard a voice screaming out in pain, followed by the loud howl of a hellhound. He ran even faster, determined to get there in time. Luke zigzagged trough dark alleys, until he reached an open space. In the middle of it was a dark human silhouette being chased by two enormous black dogs. If he paid close enough attention he could've seen one of the two dogs limping a bit, as if the human had put on a fight.

Without thinking twice he jumped in between the boy and the hellhounds. He took the first hellhound by surprise and quickly finished it of before turning to the second hellhound. The hellhound wasted no time and leaped at him, slime dripping out between his sharp teeth.

Luke took a stance, but apparently didn't need to. The hellhound jumped over him, still targeting Percy. He turned around, and for the second time formed a plan that involved grabbing on and not letting go. He jumped up with his hands reaching for the hellhound, almost missing the end of the hellhound's tail.

"Run, Percy!" Luke shouted while pulling himself higher up the hellhound. Percy obeyed and the hellhound chased after him, all the while making weird jumps like a rodeo bull.

This time though, Luke couldn't stay on without letting go of his sword. The sword fell out of his hand and hit the concrete with a clanging sound. He bit back another curse as he just lost his only weapon.

Meanwhile, Percy was getting tired. He was panting heavily and the only thing that kept him going was the rain. Without the storm he would've been dead already, but he wouldn't mind it if the thunder stopped. It had almost hit him three times when he was running away for the hellhounds. And then suddenly an unknown boy appeared and slaughtered one of the two monsters with a bronze sword. A sword that now lay somewhere on the ground.

Percy looked over his shoulder and spotted the sword, the only problem was the huge monster with glowing red eyes. However, he knew that the sword was the only thing that could save him and/or the boy on top of the beast. So he took the risk and tried something very stupid, but others would also call it heroic if they would ever find out about it. He slowed his running pace down to jogging.

"No! Keep running!" Luke yelled at him, cursing himself for not being able to help. Unless he jumped of the hellhound and retrieved his sword, he couldn't kill the monster. And if he did decide to jump, then there was no guarantee that he would gat the chance to come close to the hellhound again. Not to forget that he would once again fall on the ground, at an even higher speed than before.

But Percy just made the choice for him. The hellhound sensed his victory when he saw his prey slowing down. He jumped up with all the intentions to land on Percy. Surprising both Luke and the hellhound, Percy turned around and ran right at the hellhound who still hung in the air from his jump. He ran for his life, literally, and somehow managed to get beneath the hellhound, barely missing the hind legs as he brushed the tail away so he could continue his sprint. The hellhound landed on the ground, but was too slow in turning around, giving Percy the opportunity to get a head start.

Percy went for the sword, Luke realized. He had to bite back a grin at the boy, knowing that Percy was still in danger. But he was sort of proud of him, even though Luke had absolutely nothing to do with Percy's achievement.

Percy picked up Luke's sword and turned around. To both his and Luke's amazement, he held the sword like a natural. "Come here, doggie." Percy taunted the hellhound, all his previous fear suddenly gone and replaced by bravery.

Luke watched in awe as a nine-year-old single handedly slayed a hellhound. Coincidentally, the storm clouds disappeared. The rain didn't stop, but wasn't as bad as before. Luke got pulled out of his daze as he like so many times before fell on the ground, instead of concrete though, it was grass. It was without doubt the best landing of the night.

"Are you okay?" A concerned voice asked him. Percy had let go of the sword and was now kneeling at Luke's side.

"Yeah," He coughed and sat up. "I'm alright. How about you?" Percy held out his arms in answer, Luke searched Percy for wounds, expecting to find many of them. To his surprise Percy didn't even have a single scratch on him. And when he looked at himself, neither did he.

"Who are you?" Percy asked him, his hand gripping Luke's sword tighter, not sure if he should give it back to this stranger.

"I'm Luke."

Percy frowned. "I'm Percy, but you already knew that. How?"

It took him a moment to understand his question. "Oh, right." How did he say this without sounding like a creep? "Well, to be honest with you, I've been dreaming of you."

"I'm not gay." Percy blurted out, before blushing. "I mean, I'm flattered and all, but I don't even know you."

Luke blinked confused before realizing how it must have sounded to Percy. He groaned. "That came out wrong. I didn't mean it that way, and for the record, you're too young for me."

"But you are gay? Cause if you are, it's cool, really." Percy reassured him while sitting himself down next to Luke.

"What? No, I… that's not what-" He sighed. "Look, my sexuality doesn't matter right now. What I meant was that you suddenly showed up in my dreams, I think that I saw some things from your past."

"You've been time traveling in your sleep?"

"Er, no. At least, I don't think so. I saw you and your mother. And also your stepfather and a school trip with sharks." Luke tried to explain it as quick as possible, but it felt like he was missing some huge details.

"Huh, that's funny." Percy muttered to himself, not knowing that Luke could hear him.

"What is?" Seeing that Percy didn't understand the question he elaborated. "What is funny?"

"Oh, it's just that I also had a dream about my school trip to Marine World."

"You did?"

Percy nodded. Luke digested that information, so Percy had the same dreams as he did? Maybe that meant that if Percy had a dream that wasn't about a past experience, that Luke would also see that.

"How did you know I was in trouble?" Percy asked him curiously, by now trusting him enough to hand him his sword back.

"I followed the hellhound. But I had already been looking for you." Luke explained.

"Why? Hellhound?" Percy asked, but his second question got ignored.

"Because-" Luke cut himself of and his breath caught in his throat.

He was looking for Percy because this was a dream. This was a dream. This was a weird dream, with weird colors and mist, but still a dream. And Percy could see him.

"Luke?"

The weather had also been a big hint, and of course the suddenly appearing things like his sword and the grass. What kind of dream is this? Normally if he had a dream and was about to get hurt, he would wake up. This time he didn't. And Percy could see him.

"Hello? Are you sure that you're okay?" Percy put a hand on his shoulder and shook him lightly.

Luke ignored him, still lost in thought. Did that mean that if he told Percy about camp, that he would still remember it when he woke up?

"Percy, do you always remember your dreams?" He asked.

"Not really, but does it matter?" Percy frowned not seeing the importance of his question.

"Yes, it does matter."

"Well, most of the time I know what I dreamed about, but not the details. Sometimes I can recall everything. Though, strange enough, at the moment I know everything I dreamed of. Just like if it had happened in real life." Percy answered thoughtfully.

Like real life. Percy thinks that this is really happening.

"Percy, you're dreaming this. Maybe it was supposed to be a nightmare with monsters, but I guess that I messed that up." The words were out of his mouth before he even believed in them. But actually, it would be a good explanation. Thunder and monsters, the perfect nightmare for a son of Poseidon. Speaking of that, should he tell Percy about the gods?

"What? You're crazy, do I look like I'm sleeping?" Percy argued, not believing Luke at all. It was then that Luke decided that he had told Percy enough for one night. And if Percy was right about remembering all his dreams when being in another dream, then he could also tell him tomorrow.

"If you weren't asleep, I wouldn't be here." Luke reasoned.

Percy bit his lip. "How come I see you for the first time?"

Luke shrugged. "Well, I think this dream is different. It's not one of your memories, is it?"

He shook his head. Luke was a bit relieved that Percy didn't fight a hellhound in real life. "Maybe you can't see me in your memories because I wasn't there. But this isn't your memory so… now you can see me."

Percy nodded after a while of thinking it over. It sounded logical to him. "Okay, but why are you here? Not that I'm not grateful for it, but why did you start dreaming about me?"

Again, Luke shrugged. "I don't know."

Percy sighed. "And what now?"

"I don't know, I guess we can just talk."

"I can do that." I noticed, Luke mentally rolled his eyes. He noticed that the circle of mist around the field appeared thicker than before. Was it coming closer?

"Let's ask each other things. What's your last name?" Percy asked him.

Luke silently groaned, is he really going to play twenty questions? "Castellan. Yours?"

"Jackson." The way Percy said it sounded like he was proud of it. Then Luke remembered, Sally Jackson, of course Percy was also named Jackson. "Where did you get your sword?"

He winced. It was the second question, and already he had to either tell him about camp, or lie about his sword. "I… how about I answer this tomorrow?"

Percy stubbornly shook his head. "Who says that I can see you tomorrow? Maybe it's another kind of dream."

"Then I'll tell you in the dream after, but not now." Luke looked out over the grass, refusing to answer. Was it just him, or was the mist slowly creeping closer to them?

"My turn to ask a question." Luke cut of Percy's complaint. "What will happen once the mist reaches us?"

Percy frowned at him. "What mist?"

"The mist that is now surrounding us at not even 3 foot away." Luke raised an eyebrow, trying to stay calm. It's just mist, it wouldn't hurt them.

"Luke, I don't see any mist." Percy said in confusion and a bit worried about Luke's wellbeing.

"Well, I do. And it's now even closer." 2 foot. He stood up with his sword loosely in his hand, not sure if he needed it.

"Percy, you really can't see it?" He asked to be sure. He thought that maybe if Percy can't see it, it's not really part of the dream. But then what is it?

Percy shook his head helplessly. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Alright then, guess there's only one way to find out what it is." Luke bravely took a step into the unknown mist, and when he was inside it he couldn't see anything except for white.

This wasn't mist, this was the end of the dream, he realized. So Percy can't know when his dream will end, but Luke can. And maybe he could step into the mist even before the ending. Not like he would want to leave Percy, but it couldn't hurt to try it out once.

 

When he woke up, his sword was gone. Luke was a bit disappointed that he didn't know who keeps sending him the dreams yet, but he had his friends working on it. His friends… maybe there was still a reason to stay at camp.


	8. Explanations

A frown found its way on Luke's face when he heard the news, or actually the lack of news. "So, none of you found anything?" He told his friends who once again met up at Zeus' Fist. Maybe he should've waited longer before asking, but camp was only so big. If they truly did what he asked, than they searched the whole camp and talked to everyone with a chance of knowing something. If they hadn't found anything yet, than there was little chance they will have something a week later.

They all shook their heads, except for Annabeth who hesitated and looked doubtful. "Well… I found something, but it's a little far-fetched."

"You did? Tell us!" Silena exclaimed, her sullen mood lifted by the prospect of more information about Percy.

"Theoretically, children of Morpheus or Hypnos should be able to control dreams or sleep." She carefully explained, as if it was a dangerous thought.

"But they don't have any demigods." Chris interjected. Luke's frown deepened, he was right. Maybe it was someone outside camp?

"Wait, that's not all." Annabeth interrupted his thoughts. "You could also be looking for a god, but I guess that depends on the situation. As I said, it's a little far-fetched."

She could have said something after that, but Luke wasn't listening anymore. Could it really be a god? Who, and with what intentions? Did they want him to do something in return?

After a while he realized the others were looking at him expectantly. He coughed to cover up him zoning out. "Right, thank you Annie, and everyone else. I think that you can all stop searching now. I'll go on from here. Just tell me when you want to call in the favor."

 

At dinner something strange happened, Luke sacrificed to three gods. Three gods. Usually he only sacrificed to his father because he was forced to. That day he was still forced to do it, but he also willingly sacrificed to Hypnos and Morpheus as well. 'Please tell me who is responsible for my dreams.' was the message he left for both of them.

He paused before reluctantly going back to his table. When was he supposed to get his answer? He didn't expect one of them suddenly popping up in the middle of camp just to talk to him. He didn't even expect to get a real answer, to be honest.

So you could imagine his surprise when he went to sleep and didn't see Percy. Instead, Luke was standing in a completely black room. It wasn't dark, but black. He could see himself just fine, even though he had no idea where the light was coming from, but his surroundings were black, and as far as he could see empty. "Hello?" he shouted and it stayed silent except for his echo.

"Percy? Can you hear me?" Luke slowly grew worried. Where was he?

"He can't hear you, but I brought him here with me." A man's voice boomed as if there were speakers installed all over the room and aimed at Luke. "And I also brought you here."

Suddenly a figure came flashed into the room right in front of him. He was tall, and clothed in a long dark-grey/blackish cloak. "You wanted to speak to me." Luke tried to read the man's face as the man spoke, at a normal volume this time, but found it impossible to even get a clear look of it.

"Depends… who are you?" Luke asked distrusting.

He chuckled humorlessly. "I guess I can't blame you for not knowing who I am. If I were one of the Olympians you would've bowed for me in an instant, but no, I'm just Morpheus. God of Dreams, lord of subconscious and leader of the Oneiroi. But you should've known that already, otherwise you wouldn't have asked for help."

Luke did in fact already know these titles; he just didn't know that this was the god they belonged to. Deciding that it would be smart to be in good graces with the god whom he needed help from, he bowed.

"I'm sorry I didn't recognize you immediately, my lord."

He motioned for Luke to stand up again but didn't react to his apology. "I brought you here to give you some answers,"

"But…?" Luke trailed of, knowing for sure that the god wanted something in exchange yet not knowing what. Gods don't do anything for free, maybe he had to go on a quest?

"But I want you to do me a favor when the time is right." He could almost see the smirk that he was sure Morpheus wore on his face. Luke was getting tired of all those favors he had to do, first his friends and now a god. The only reason he was in this situation was Percy, but strange enough Luke didn't mind it that much.

"What kind of favor are you talking about?" The demigod asked cautiously.

"Nothing big, just listen to my advice when you have a choice to make." Morpheus told him nonchalantly, though this got Luke even more suspicious. What choice that he, a mere demigod, could make was important enough for a god? But despite that, he really wanted to know why he met Percy. Speaking of Percy, where was he?

He nodded slowly. "Alright, so you have the answers?"

"Yes, yes I do. As I said, I brought him with me." The god sounded very pleased with himself, but it took Luke a moment to understand.

"You-you mean… Percy?" Luke asked confused. "How?"

"Why, because of his father. I expected you to be smart enough to have figured that out already."

"His father? Of course I knew that he was a demigod. I just always thought it would be sea related and not… dreams. Wait, are you saying he is your child?" Luke exclaimed, shocked by his sudden realization.

The god groaned at his stupidity. "No, you foolish mortal. I am not his father."

"Then why does he have those powers? How are you even sure that it's him. And where is he? You sai-" Luke would have asked a lot more if it weren't for Percy falling down on top of him. "Ouch, what was that for?" He asked Morpheus more than a little annoyed.

"You asked for him, didn't you? I could just as well send him back to his nightmare, if you'd like." He answered innocently.

Luke bit back a remark, remembering that he was talking to a god. He pushed Percy of him, and got up. He stuck a hand out for Percy to grab, when he realized that he was unconscious. "Why isn't he awake?" He looked up at Morpheus, worried that Percy landed a bit harder than himself.

"Because this conversation isn't for him to hear. He's only here to make you believe what I'm going to tell you."

"And what are you going to tell me?"

"Percy doesn't know that he is sending his dreams to you. As god of dreams, I make and control them. Yet, this demigod subconsciously managed to alter the dream enough to bring someone else in it." Morpheus sounded a bit irritated, yet fascinated at the same time. "I'm not really sure how he is doing it, since you are right in saying it's not one of the most common abilities. Perseus is just too unpredictable because of his parentage."

"Okay… but why me? If what you're saying is right, my lord, than he could've pulled anyone into his dreams. So, why me?"

"It could've been someone else deciding on who would share Percy's dream, but Percy didn't choose for himself. Either it was someone else, or you were picked by coincidence." The god kept staring at Percy like he was trying to figure him out. "Personally, I think you should go with the second. Don't flatter yourself too much by thinking that here are two god interfering with your life."

"What do you mean two gods? Why does it have to be a god who send me to him?" Luke followed his lead and also looked at Percy. He would deny it to anyone who asked, but it hurt a bit to know that it could've just as well been another demigod to help Percy. Maybe that was the problem; Percy clearly didn't need help. He can handle Gabe easily with his mother at his side. He strangled a snake as a toddler. Heck, he even killed a monster with Luke's sword!

"No other demigod is able to control dreams, right now. Gods should have enough influence over my domain to at least control who gets pulled into a dream by Percy's powers." Morpheus explained, but Luke hardly listened.

Some days ago Luke already knew that Percy wasn't the one who needed help. He thought that it was himself who needed help from Percy. He wasn't sure for what, but now he already knew if he should run away or stay at camp. And that was yesterday. Today he got told that there was no reason that Percy and he met.

"Which god would have a reason to send met to Percy?" He was completely lost by now.

"As far as I know, none. But I'm not exactly one of the most important gods, so I don't receive all the gossip. Styx, I'm quite thankful for that, actually. There's so much going on in the council and it's mostly the same story all over again. Gods fighting over Aphrodite, Zeus and Poseidon fighting each other, some near wars that result in natural disasters…" The god shook his head in distaste. "No thanks, that's one of the good sides of being a minor god. The only one, I suppose."

Luke didn't respond to his mini-rant. He didn't really care about coming of rude for ignoring a god at the moment.

"So, I've got time for one last question." Morpheus started after a moment of awkward silence. "After that you'll have to figure things out on your own, unless you have a really good offer to me."

The demigod didn't think long about his question. "Who-"

"Don't finish that sentence." He interrupted, earning him a weird look. "Do you really want to waste that question on something you already know?"

Luke frowned, Morpheus was right about that, he already had a good guess about what the answer would be. "Okay, in that case… When is the best time to bring Percy to camp?"

It took a while for him to answer, and when he did, it wasn't exactly an answer. "Should I be annoyed or flattered that you seem to think I know everything? I am the god of dreams, bringing demigods to camp isn't one of my domains."

"But my lord, you gave me one last question. And I'm sure that you have an idea on what the answer is." Luke insisted.

"I'm warning you, kid. I am not obliged to answer your questions. And don't try to trick me, I'll always be able to get back at you. Cause no one can avoid dreaming." Luke shivered at his threat. "Fortunately for you, I am a man of my word. Percy will be ready for camp once he lost his mother." Morpheus sounded very pleased, despite the grave news he brought. He must have noticed that Luke was intimidated.

"Now, be gone."

And with that the dark world around him shattered and light broke through. Luke closed his eyes, blinded by all the white. When he opened them again he expected to be back in his cabin. That was not a correct assumption. Instead of his cabin he saw stars in the dark sky above him. The feeling of sand on his skin and the sound of waves crashing onto shore told him exactly where he was. A beach. He sat up to find the beach deserted, except for Percy who was calmly sitting next to him facing the sea.

"What beach is this?" Luke asked him.

"Montauk." The way Percy said it made him think that the beach held some sort of meaning to him. He had been here before. "I got chased by some eagles, when you suddenly fell out of the sky and they disappeared."

Luke groaned. "I really have to stop falling on the ground."

Percy chuckled. "Yeah, I can imagine it becoming boring after a while."

They sat in peace as they watched wave after wave heading their way.

"Thank you." Percy suddenly said, causing Luke to look up in surprise.

"Its nothing, really. Especially because I just fell out of the air." Luke waved it of, not wanting to be thanked for something he didn't remember. But Percy didn't let him dismiss it so quickly. "Its not nothing. You're here, even though you don't have to be. I'm thankful for that. Thank you, you're a good friend."

Luke got a warm feeling in his chest as he heard Percy say those words. It was unlikely, but it almost felt like caring. Gods, who was he kidding. Having spoken with him for the second time only confirmed what he long knew was going to happen. He had started caring for Percy Jackson, the maybe son of Poseidon.

"You're welcome."


	9. The One-Eyed Stalker

When Luke told his friends that he would owe them one, he didn't expect to end up in this situation. After all, who expects to stand on both sides of a war? Especially if it's a prank war between Travis and Connor Stoll. That is probably the first sign that something has gone horribly wrong, the Stolls fighting each other.

Luke couldn't even remember very well how it started, but it involved a prank gone wrong and them blaming each other for it, so then they wanted to prove who was the best pranker of the two. Honestly, it was a stupid reason for a war. It became even worse when Connor asked him to help because apparently he: 'said you owed us all. So two favors for the two Stoll brothers. And as on of the brothers, I want you to help me.'

At the time, he had shrugged it off, nodding in confirmation that he would help him in the war. But when at breakfast the same day a fuming Travis came to him, also asking for help, Luke knew that it wasn't going to end well. He didn't even know half how right he was.

You see, when Connor asked him to help, he also asked him to keep it a secret, because otherwise Travis would be suspicious of both of them. And then Luke swore on the river Styx to not tell Travis about it. So when Travis asked him to stand on his side of the war, he couldn't think of a good reason to say no.

He quickly learned that it was not a good idea to help the enemy of his first ally, who was also his second ally, to defeat the enemy of his second ally, who was his first ally. Yeah, the situation was a mess.

First he had to help Travis distract Connor so he could booby-trap his bed, which wasn't so hard to do for Luke because Connor had already planned to see him to tell him that he had to slip something in Travis' drink at lunch.

He hadn't even been alone for a few minutes after saying bye to Connor, when Travis wanted Luke to allow him to skip a few activities so he could prepare the next few pranks. Luke let him go, relieved that for a few hours he only had to deal with one Stoll. Until Connor started talking his ears off about how he wanted to start small by some pranks that were supposed to annoy Travis, but also let him underestimate Connor, so he won't expect he big prank that was planned for the end of the day. It was just the tiniest bit impressive how he could use so many sentences for such a simple plan.

"Speaking of Travis, I let him skip some activities, so you'll have more time to prepare pranks." Luke informed him.

"Awesome! Thank you!" Connor exclaimed, before running of to their cabin.

Luke sighed in relief, finally some rest. Just him, a loud cabin, and some strawberries to pick. The war had just started that morning, and already it drove him crazy. He had to end it as soon as possible.

"Luke!" He mentally groaned and turned around to face a grinning Travis Stoll, who had just returned when Connor left.

"What is it?" He asked, trying to hide his irritation.

"I just got a genius idea!" Travis shouted in excitement, before looking around for eavesdroppers. Then he quietly explained his idea. "I was thinking, Connor doesn't know that you're helping me, right?"

Luke nodded, not quite liking were this was headed.

"So he won't be suspicious of you, right?"

"Not the slightest." Luke's mouth was set in a tin line.

Travis smiled widely. "That means that you can act like a spy! Make him tell you what he's planning, or let me know where he will be at what time. Can you do that for me?"

Luke coughed awkwardly. "Er, actually… I'd rather not." He said lamely, trying to think of a possible excuse.

"But, why? I mean, you did tell me that if I ever needed a favor… And I asked you to help me win the prank war, spying on Connor would help out very much." Travis raised an eyebrow at him in expectation.

"Because-" Luke cut himself off, weighing his options. "Because if he tells me something in private, and that information gets used by you in your next prank, he will know it was me. Now, listen. I only owe you one favor. And that favor was helping you win the war, not spying on the opposing side. I will help you, but I don't have to do everything you ask me to." With that said, Luke walked away, not letting him respond.

Trying to be manipulated by two younger half-brothers was not fun at all, especially when the two half-brothers where fighting each other. Why was he doing this again? Oh, right, he owed them both a favor because they helped search for the one who send him to Percy. What made it even worse was that the search didn't even pay off, since Morpheus told him that it was Percy himself. Gods, he was in this big mess because of Percy. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to blame the young demigod.

Even when at lunch Connor's food exploded in his face and Luke had to slip a weird green substance in Travis' drink, which he later found out made his voice squeaky, he wasn't mad at Percy.

Luke looked over at the empty Poseidon table, imagining Percy sitting there on his own. His feelings on that thought were conflicted. Last night Morpheus told him that the best moment for Percy to enter camp is when Percy loses his mom. Of course, Luke didn't want Percy to have to go through that pain, he knew that Percy loved his mother very much. But still, he couldn't help but be curious about how Percy would react to the camp, and vice versa.

During his free time, Luke found out that among other things, Connor had taped the door and Travis walked right into the trap. It had somehow ended up in a big water fight, fortunately most of it happened outside the cabin. Apparently, Travis had prepared water balloons to use on Connor. To be honest, Luke had hoped that they'd just talk to each other, instead of continuing the prank war. He should've known better, it was only just getting started.

 

Children were running around, chasing each other around the playground. Laughter filled the air, making it hard to believe that someone might not be enjoying his break as much as the others. And that someone just happened to be Percy. Luke found him sitting on a bench on his own, but he soon realized that Percy couldn't see him. This dream happened in the past. Nonetheless, Percy looked the same age as he had the day before, 9 years old. He must be in third grade, Luke concluded. And the other children are from the same school.

Then why was Percy alone? Did he still get bullied? That question soon got answered as a guy, who was almost as tall as Luke, walked up to Percy with a small gang of other kids.

"Jackson, how ya doing? Sitting there all by yourself, I mean. Haven't found friends yet?" The boy said with a smirk. The others laughed.

Percy rolled his eyes and was just about to respond when someone else did.

"Leave him alone, Craig." It was a girl, the same age as Percy. "What has he ever done to you?"

Luke was not the only one surprised by this girl. "Jenny, why are you suddenly defending this loser?" The boy, Craig asked her, a slight hint of betrayal in his voice.

Jenny ignored him and turned to Percy, who hadn't moved from his previous spot. "Hi, I'm Jenny."

"I know, we're in the same class, remember?" Percy raised an eyebrow, obviously a little skeptical about her help.

She blushed. "I remember, but I wasn't sure you knew me."

"Of course I know who you are, everyone knows."

She blushed even harder, making Craig glare at Percy. "Do you want to play with me and my friends?"

Percy looked a little stunned by her question, but soon a big smile lit his face. "Sure!" He followed the girl, not glancing back at his bullies.

They played some ballgame with a lot of weird rules, which Luke didn't even bother to remember. He just watched Percy have fun, finally having some friends to play with.

"Pass me the ball, Percy!" Percy whirled around, searching for the one who spoke.

"Here it comes!" He threw it at exactly the right speed and angle, a big smile still covering his face. Only wavering slightly when he saw something black move from the corner of his eye. But when he turned to look for it, it was gone again. With a frown he turned around again, forgetting the strange feeling he had for a while.

Luke however, didn't ignore it. He too, saw something. And even though he knew that he had no power in this dream, he wanted to know what it was. Just for the fact of knowing, not because it could be a possible threat for Percy.

Glancing one last time at Percy, he walked in the direction of the figure. He didn't bother to hide himself, what were the chances that someone would see him? Big bushes blocked his way, but that didn't stop him from eyeing his surroundings suspiciously. No sign of possible danger. Still not feeling completely reassured, Luke walked back to Percy, only to freeze when he saw a man in a black trench coat stand twenty feet behind Percy.

The situation wouldn't have been so bad, if the man hadn't been looking at Percy and Percy alone. But he was, and Luke couldn't do anything about it. Not in a flashback-dream. At least he survives it, was the only good side of the situation, but Luke already knew that it didn't mean that Percy couldn't be harmed.

By now, Percy had also noticed the man. He frowned, but he made no move to run away or something like that. Instead, he ignored the man and kept playing. Until someone else saw the man too, which also meant that the mist didn't cover him.

"Percy, do you know that man? He's staring at you." A boy asked him curiously. "Is that your dad? His hair is weird."

Percy hesitated, turning just the slightest bit in the direction of where the man previously stood, and was still standing now. "I have no idea who he is, how long has he been here?"

The other kids had stopped playing, in favor of looking at the strange man. Some of them more blunt then the others. "I think I saw him ten minutes ago, too." Jenny said, biting her lip. "But maybe it was someone else…"

The man didn't seem bothered by the looks he was getting from the eight children, his eyes were still focused on Percy.

"Hey, you!" a girl rudely called out, "who are you?" She was about to walk up to him when another girl pulled her back. "Don't talk to him, what if he grabs you? Maybe he is an escaped prisoner!"

The boy from earlier snorted. "Doesn't look like a prisoner to me. Prisoners don't wear black coats, do they?"

"Maybe he is a thief! That's how he got into prison!" The girl was nearly panicking, even though it was Percy that the man was looking at.

"I can get a teacher?" Jenny suggested carefully

Percy nodded, still not looking straight at the man to not let him know Percy was watching him. "Yeah, thanks."

Jenny ran away, and Luke saw the secret relief on her face. He himself was not so relieved. If it was a monster in disguise, then a mortal teacher won't be of any help.

Luke stepped closer to the mysterious man, hoping to catch a glimpse of his face under the broad-brimmed hat. The first thing he noticed was an eye. There was a big eye in the middle of his face, marking the 'man' as a cyclops. And the cyclops was looking at Percy, but the strange thing was; he didn't look hungry at all.

"Guys, let's just continue somewhere else." A bored looking girl said, and walked away. They all followed her, though Percy looked a bit unsure.

They started playing again, the man soon forgotten. Until, of course, he was behind Percy again.

"Percy, he's back!" With a start Percy turned around, coming face to face with the cyclops. He gasped in shock, his eyes turning the size of saucers. Percy slowly backed up in fear.

"Look! That's him, you see? He's still here!" Jenny suddenly shouted from across the playground. She had two teachers with her, both women around the age of 40.

Everyone stayed were they were, just watching the three of them approach. Some other kids also stopped playing, deciding that this was much more interesting. Soon, everyone was watching the drama unfold, including Craig, the boy who had bullied Percy.

When they came closer, Luke could finally read the faces of the two teachers. While the brunette one looked apprehensive and cautious of the man, the blonde had a casual mask slipped over her facial expression. Underneath it, Luke could see the same emotions as the brunette had. Still, it was clear that she was more in control here.

"Sir, I must ask you to leave this playground immediately." The blonde woman told him firmly. They all waited for the man to reply, but the cyclops kept silent and unmoving.

"Hello? Do you speak English?" the cyclops tilted his head slightly, as to show that he was listening.

"Leave now, or we'll have to get the police involved. I'm sure that there's some kind of law against stalking children." The teacher threatened. This time it did get a reaction out of the man.

The cyclops growled in annoyance, and for a moment Luke was afraid he was going to attack. Fortunately, that wasn't the case. He retreated and walked away at a fast pace, leaving a dumfounded Percy behind.

"Hey, kid, are you alright?" The brunette teacher asked him in concern, scanning for injuries. Except for the fact that Percy looked a bit pale, there was no further reminder of what just happened.

He slowly nodded, "yeah, think so. Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Why did he only have one eye?" Percy looked up at her in confusion and the tiniest hint of fear.

"One eye? I'm sorry, but I don't think he missed an eye. Are you sure that you saw it right?" She asked him worried.

He shook his head. "I know what I saw. He had one eye in the middle of his head!"

The blonde teacher kneeled beside him and grabbed his arm. "Listen up, I know that he's scary and you have the right to be afraid, but that is no reason to lie about what you saw, just to get attention."

A group of boys laughed loudly, earning them a quick glare from Percy and Luke.

"I'm not lying!" he protested stubbornly.

"Look, the man is gone, you got the attention you wanted, so just let it go, okay?" The blonde teacher stood up and walked away, not waiting for his reply. The other woman hastily followed her.

When they were out of hearing range, the boys exploded into laughing fits.

Percy scowled, at them, and Luke saw Craig step forward when he got his laughter under control.

"I knew you were a loser, Jackson, but I didn't know that you were also an attention seeker!"

"I'm not an attention seeker!"

"But you are a loser?" This earned another wave of laughter, and this time some others even joined in.

Percy looked around, a betrayed look on his face. The children he was playing with just a few minutes ago were now frowning at him.

"Guys, you believe me, right?" Percy pleaded with them.

"Don't be stupid, everyone knows you're lying." Craig answered for them.

"Craig," Jenny warned him "he-"

"He what? Stop defending him when he clearly doesn't deserve it!" Luke could totally picture Craig having a temper tantrum. "I was right about him, and you know it! Everyone knows it, now."

He pulled Jenny away from Percy, "Let's just ignore him, and let's see if he'll still try to get attention."

With a last glare at Percy, he walked away, the others following his lead and going back to whatever they were doing, without Percy. Percy was left standing alone with a sad look covered his face. Luke went to stand beside him, even though he knew that Percy couldn't see him. Never before had he wanted so badly to comfort Percy. It hurt to see the hurt on Percy's face.

He wondered, not for the first time, how Percy had managed to worm himself a way into Luke's heart. Especially in such a short time period, and only having talked to each other in two dreams.

The rest of the break was spent on a bench in the corner of the playground, Percy still sulking, and Luke trying to not feel as helpless as he did.

 

A loud yelp had him out of his bed in record time, his brain on high alert.

"Travis! I'm gonna get you for this!" Connor shouted furiously from his soaked bed, a bucket still over his head, distorting his words. He threw the bucket away, almost hitting Travis, who was still in bed, on the head. Then his face suddenly morphed into a pleased grin. "Oh wait, I already did."

"What do you mean?" Travis asked in confusion, his voice was still a few octaves higher than it was supposed to be. That drink from yesterday would last for another week or so. Luke climbed back in bed, almost falling asleep again.

"You'll find out later. One hint, all your clothes are pink." Connor smirked, and Travis' eyes widened comically.

"You didn't!"

"Yes I did. Go ahead and check it."

Travis did go and check, only to chuckle amused. "They're completely normal, Con. Your prank failed."

"Nope, I'm sure it worked." He grinned proudly.

Travis held up some clothes, showing them to the whole cabin. "No, it didn't."

"Yes, it did. Turning them pink was not the prank, gluing them to your hand however…"

Travis gaped at him, then turned to his hand that was covered with his clothes. He shook his hand wildly, trying in vain to get the clothes off. "Okay, I have to admit I didn't see that one coming… But anyway, the whole cabin is going to hate you tomorrow."

"Oh? And why is that?" Connor asked him cautiously. The whole cabin was watching the two brothers fight, most of them looking severely annoyed.

"You woke them up at four o' clock. The bucket was set up to only fall down once you were awake and sitting up straight in your bed. It was your choice when to activate it.

Connor got a lot of grumpy glares; no one likes to be woken up early.

"Hey, it's not my fault you set it up like that!" Connor defended himself, only half succeeding. They were both getting glares now.

"Just go to sleep, you two. We'll kill you both tomorrow." Luke turned around with a groan. "Lights out."

Right, the dream almost made him forget. He was in the middle of a war.


	10. To Capture a Flag

It was Friday and the whole camp was talking about two things in particular. The Stolls and Capture the flag. After the incident that morning, they had not yet killed the Stolls, even though some of the more serious sleepers had actually considered locking them up somewhere and throwing the key away. Instead they'd all glared at the two brothers, which was terrifying enough for them to behave for a little while.

Even though the war was on a temporary standstill, word of it had already spread over the whole camp. Luke shook his head, after all these years he still couldn't quite get how news spread that fast in camp. Everyone knew, but they hadn't even stood up from their table at breakfast yet. Well, actually, he knew that the Aphrodite kids played a big role in it, but that's as far as his knowledge on that matter went.

At least not everyone was talking about it; demigods who couldn't care less about the prank war were talking excitedly about capture the flag. As always, capture the flag would be held after dinner, and the whole camp was looking forward to it. Except for Luke, who knew that it wasn't going to be a normal capture the flag. This week there was a war between two members of the Hermes Cabin. Both of who couldn't be trusted anymore, since there was a big possibility that they'd turn against each other while fighting against the other team.

Luke looked across the table to where Travis was seated, far away from Connor. This only confirmed his previous assumption that the war wasn't completely over yet.

He had to be cautious then, Luke couldn't simply place them in positions far away from the other because that would only result in them abandoning their task in favor of pranking. Having the two of them together at the same place will immediately result in pranks, so that wasn't an option either. Which left him with two solutions.

Number 1: make sure that they won't be able to find each other, so they won't know where to place a prank. This clearly doesn't solve everything, but if it works, then maybe they won't accidently blow the whole forest up.

Number 2: think of something else.

Clearly, the first choice was the best he had. It would render the two demigods useless, but if he had the right alliances he could afford that. His cabin was the biggest, and most of them could hold themselves in battle fairly well. Fortunately, he was the Captain of the blue team, so he could decide for himself who he wanted an alliance with. Ares would lead the red team, so that left Athena, Apollo, Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite and Hephaestus.

Luke thought about it, it was always smart to have Athena on the team and to avoid trouble finding several other cabins, he should just ask for a temporary alliance with Lee Fletcher. Even though it would be three against five, Hermes and Apollo where the biggest cabins so the numbers would remain even.

When he was done eating his breakfast, he reminded himself to ask Annabeth and Lee about it, chances were that they'd already joined the red team. The sooner he asked, the bigger the chance they are available.

He first went up to Annabeth, who had just stood up from her table as well. She saw him coming and smiled knowingly at him. "No, my cabin hasn't joined the red team yet. And yes, we'll be on the blue one if we trade shower times."

Luke laughed, shaking his head slightly, "You know me too well. Thank you, Annie."

"No problem," she said, "just make sure we win. Who else do we have on our side?"

"No one. I'm planning to ask Apollo." Luke informed her.

Annabeth nodded accepting. "Sounds good, but you better ask it soon, I heard Clarisse also wants them on her team."

"Will do, thanks again." He said and after they agreed to talk on a strategy later he left to search for Lee.

A few minutes later he found who he was looking for. Unfortunately, he was already negotiating with Clarisse.

Luke cursed, and paused his step, looking for any signs of Lee having declined the alliance with Ares. He didn't find any. Disappointed, he turned around, a thoughtful look on his face. Who was there left to ask? Since Apollo's cabin had about twice as much demigods as a normal one, he had to find not one, but two replacements.

Someone tapped on his shoulder and he turned around again. "Silena? What's wrong?" He asked upon seeing the serious look on the daughter of Aphrodite's face.

"Nothing's wrong, thank you for asking. I wanted to talk to you about that favor."

Luke blinked surprised, he hadn't expected Silena to actually use that favor. After all, she had been on board already without the promise of a reward. Needless to say he was curious about what it was that she would ask from him. "You decided on what you want?"

She nodded and said reassuringly. "It's nothing big, just a temporary alliance for capture the flag tonight."

Again, he was surprised. "That's all? Are you sure, Silena?" Despite what he was saying, he was very grateful that it was something so easily done. The Stolls had already caused enough trouble with their favor, after all.

"Well, actually… I would also like it if you gave me, or someone else from my cabin, the chance to take the flag." She said firmly, before bursting into an explanation. "I'm not stupid, I know what people say about my cabin behind our backs. They all say that we can't fight, or are afraid of dirt. They think we're worthless in a fight, and that's why we're not exactly the most wanted cabin in capture the flag.

"Trust me, I know why they all think that, and for most of us it's true too. But believe it or not, I for one do want to fight. I'll still wear make-up of course, but I am fighting. While most of my siblings will probably not participate, there are some who want to prove that they can fight just as good as any other demigod. Don't get me wrong, we always participate in capture the flag, not just today. But still almost no one sees our efforts to destroy this prejudice about our cabin. So I'm asking you, please give Aphrodite's kids the chance to be the heroes for once, let us get the flag for the blue team."

Silena breathed out, having finished her little speech.

Luke all the while stared in stunned silence. He had never noticed it before, but there were indeed some great fighters in Aphrodite's cabin. And while he wasn't certain that their team could afford having demigods sit by and do and re-do their make-up or hair whilst also having the Stolls on war, he did owe Silena this one favor. Maybe even more because she'd helped him out multiple times already. Declining wasn't an option if he still wanted her help in the future.

"I understand the point you're making, but you didn't need to explain it all to me. I would've given you the position had you just asked." He probably wouldn't have, but she didn't need to know that. "I'd be glad to have you and your siblings on the blue team, Silena." Luke finished with a gentle smile.

Silena smiled brightly. "Thank you so so much! I'm going to tell everyone about it, see you later!"

When she was a good distance away, Luke groaned and grabbed his head in frustration. All right, so maybe it was just a game, but he still liked to win. And winning suddenly seemed a lot harder than a week ago.

With the Aphrodite cabin joining the blue side, there was only one cabin left to ask. The only cabin small enough to fit, was Dionysus. Or rather Pollux and Castor, since they were the only ones in it. Luke had the feeling they were largely outnumbered, though it were only Travis and Connor from Hermes' cabin and most likely a large amount of Aphrodite's cabin who he couldn't rely on.

After a quick negotiation they had switched some chores and Castor and Pullox joined his team.

He had to make a plan, and he knew just the person who could help him with it. Once again, he needed to find Annabeth.

 

It was an hour and a bit before capture the flag started when he found time to ask Annabeth. The rest of the day had been filled with activities and a few innocent pranks like sabotaged goblets at lunch, nothing he couldn't handle. So far the Stolls hadn't caused that much havoc yet, but he knew better than thinking that it would stay so. Though none of them had asked for his help anymore, he knew that they were both planning something.

Luke had a feeling that no matter what happened that evening, the war was going to end during capture the flag, and it was ending with one big final prank from both of them.

He just prayed that the Stolls were smart enough to make sure that the pranks meant no disadvantage to their team. He had already asked them separately to direct their pranks on not only their brother, but also the red team. They had both answered with a shrug and a mischievous smile.

"I can see how that may become a problem." Annabeth said once Luke had explained the situation to her. "And honestly, I think that it's going to get really difficult for us. The red team is strong. They've got Ares, Demeter, Apollo and Hephaestus."

"I know, any suggestions?" Luke asked.

"You can either use a normal strategy with the demigods who can fight, except letting Aphrodite take the flag. Or you can think completely out of the box and do something that they won't expect and don't know how to react to, while also letting Aphrodite get the banner."

"What kind of out of the box thinking are you talking about?" Luke asked curiously, it was no secret that Annabeth was the smartest of her cabin.

"A plan where you can let everyone, including the Stolls and Aphrodite's cabin, do what they do best. You can order the Stolls to fight their war somewhere between our flag and that of the opposite side. This way we can guarantee they will get caught in the middle of it, and if we know beforehand where they both are, we can let the rest of our team know that they have to avoid that place."

Luke was impressed. "That could work, yes. They can continue their war, the blue team won't get hurt and the red team probably will. That's amazing, Annie!"

Annabeth blushed slightly before explaining the rest of her plan. "As for Aphrodite, they like to flirt and gossip." She raised an eyebrow, expecting Luke to understand it already.

He didn't, not completely. "I can use that to my advantage, I guess… But are you sure that it will work? I know for certain that there are enough demigods who don't want to stay and chat with them instead of fighting.

"Think about it, they don't know that we told them to flirt and gossip, so maybe they'll overhear something by 'accident',which distracts them from their fight. And I know that you know how strange it is to fight when you can hear Aphrodite kids commenting on your looks." Annabeth said with something in her voice that Luke couldn't identify.

"That is some impressive out of the box thinking, maybe even enough to grand us victory. The majority of the team will spread in smaller groups, each of them with at least one Aphrodite demigod who can fight. You'll be in one of these groups. I've got to go tell the Stolls to stay at one place. I'll tell you and the others your task and where to avoid later."

With that he went to tell the Stolls, separately of course, that they had to stay at the center of the creek. They agreed without asking questions, much to Luke's surprise. Not one to complain when something went right, he shrugged of his suspicions about the two and went to the Aphrodite demigods, informing them that he had a task that they won't mind doing.

Soon everyone on his team already knew their task, while normally he handed them out in the few minutes between dinner and capture the flag. That left him with nothing to do when he led his team down the path to the south woods.

This week their flag would be at Zeus' Fist. Which was nothing new. Actually, Luke was counting on Clarisse knowing where to look. She would most probably send someone right into the Stolls, who'd gotten border patrol. Anyone who managed to avoid them, got to deal with the Aphrodite kids scattered around on the blue side, sitting in pairs and gossiping loudly. Each pair had one or two armed demigods hidden in the trees close by.

One of the small groups hat went to the north woods was supposed to act as an distraction, just like two sisters from Aphrodite who actually wanted to fight, but where okay with acting as distraction first by talking very loudly about how they shouldn't have left their border patrol position at the middle of the creek (where the Stolls are).

The other half of the team would go get the red team's banner, also in small groups of three or four.

The conch horn sounded and with a loud battle cry they separated into the groups they had agreed on beforehand, all of them going in an arch around the two Stolls, who were probably full on battling each other already.

It didn't take long before his own group existing of Silena, Annabeth, Chris and himself encountered some heavily armed Hephaestus kids led by their head counsellor Charles Beckendorf. A quick scan of their enemies told Luke that it wouldn't be an easy fight for them.

Metal clashed against metal, signaling the beginning of the battle. Luke took on Beckendorf, as he was the biggest threat. The first swing was a hard one that Luke easily blocked with his own sword, quickly placing an attack aimed for Beckendorf's left side. Beckendorf side stepped his sword and countered with another hard blow. The fight was fast paced but it was clear that Luke had the upper hand.

Luke saw that most of his group had already finished their own battles and quickly disarmed Beckendorf. They both had not came out of the battle unscathed, Luke just had a few bruises though, nothing serious.

"Be careful where you step from here on." Luke warned the rest as they crossed the creek without any further problems.

A few seconds later they heard screaming in the distance. "Eek! What is this stuff?!" A Demeter girl shouted not so far away. A small explosion from the middle of the creek followed her scream. Grunts of pain could be heard from several others.

Luke chuckled sounding pleased. "That should be the Stolls. It actually worked. Also thanks to your sisters, Silena. They're great at spreading false rumors."

Silena smiled with satisfaction, her pink armor making her look like a princess turned soldier. "No one will doubt their abilities again, especially when we win. Let's continue."

They were able to get far into enemy lines when arrows rained down on them, most of them where avoided or blocked, but one managed to latch into Annabeth's foot. "I'm okay!" she told them after she cried out in surprise or pain. With just one glance at the wound Luke knew it was bad news. Another wave of arrows was fired their way.

"Chris, stay here and shield her. Silena and I will take out the archers." Luke had no doubts that it was the Apollo kids shooting at them from the trees.

Chris nodded. "Okay." And raised his shield as another arrow almost hit his head.

"Come on, they will see us if we run straight at them." Luke pulled Silena behind a tree, gesturing for her to climb up. "They expect us to attack from the ground, so try to make as less noise as possible."

"Got it." Without much effort they climbed into the tree, before choosing a wide branch from where they could leap to other trees.

"Have you found the other two already?" Someone asked.

Luke looked up and saw some of the Apollo kids spread out in one big tree, two of them facing different directions while the others were still shooting at Chris and Annabeth, who had moved behind another tree.

"No, it's like they disappeared." An Apollo camper named Michael answered. "Maybe they took another route."

"I don't think so, Annabeth and Chris are still there." Will gave his opinion.

Luke nudged Silena and gestured to them, reminded her once again to be silent and then slowly moved closer.

It was working, until Luke accidently startled some birds that were sitting on the branch he had just grabbed. They flew up in a panic and alarmed the Apollo campers of their position.

"Luke and Silena at our left side!" And soon they got several bows aimed at them, all ready to fire. "Surrender or we'll shoot!"

"Luke," Silena started, sparing a wary glance at the thin branch they were standing on. "I don't think this branch is strong enough to hold us that long." Luke didn't need to look down to see what she meant- he could feel the branch bending down already, if they just stayed where they were…

Lee Fletcher shot a warning arrow at them, reminding them of the other threat. The arrow missed Luke's foot by just a few inches, which was probably done on purpose, but it was enough to split the already overloaded branch, making it snap in two.

Which a short yelp Luke fell on the ground below, which was surprisingly soft. Silena was still in the tree as she stood behind Luke and her part of the branch didn't fall.

"Don't shoot!" He heard Lee order. "We may hit her too!"

Her? An irritated growl from below made him realize what they meant. Even with the armor, he should've had made a harder impact on the ground, but it was not the ground that he'd landed on.

"CASTELLAN! GET OFF OF ME RIGHT NOW!" Clarisse bellowed furiously, eyes practically blazing with anger. She was already reaching for her sword when Luke carefully got up.

"Sorry, didn't know you were there." He apologized, though he didn't really feel that sorry. He also grabbed his sword.

Clarisse scowled and glared at him, though Luke was much older and not easily intimidated. "Well, I was. And now you and I are going to fight. Captain against Captain."

Luke knew that Clarisse was strong, but he was older and more experienced. Plus he was thinking clearly and not blinded by anger. But it was precisely that anger that fuelled Clarisse and made her a better fighter sometimes. Which at the moment meant that she was at least as good as Beckendorf had been. Not to forget the eight or so archers up in the trees, waiting for their chance to shoot him.

"Alright," He accepted her challenge. "I suppose you mean me against you andyour archers?"

"Exactly." Without waiting for his response she made the first move by mindlessly slashing at his abdomen, he of course blocked it easily and gave her a nice bruise on her stomach. As soon as he had done that however, he had to raise his sword to slap away an arrow, sidestepping a few more.

"Silena, go check on Chris and Annabeth. If they're not wounded too bad, go on without me." He ordered distractedly, his mind still focused on the battle.

He for once honestly had no idea if he was going to win. He had no way of taking the archers out, since he only had a dagger and a sword. Even if he had the time to throw the dagger, as the only way to hit them was throwing things, there were eight archers and only one dagger.

Clarisse tried to swipe him off his feet, but Luke saw it coming and jumped over it, meanwhile giving her a nasty cut on her left arm. He feinted an attack at Clarisse's shoulder, before trying to stab her in the foot. However, a well-aimed arrow hit his hand, making his movements falter for a moment. That moment was enough for Clarisse to take a step back to avoid his sword. With impressing speed she moved closer again, she raised her sword and slung it at his side.

Luke just managed to step aside, but in order to do so another arrow hit him, this time in his right arm, unprotected by his armor. With a small grunt of pain he pulled the arrow out, it hadn't gone in too deep. Well, maybe it was prettydeep, but he wasn't bleeding to death. Luke was at a serious disadvantage, though.

He knew that he couldn't keep it up much longer, but he would not surrender. Stubbornly he kept on fighting, sword in his left hand and his right arm bleeding.

A fast arrow scratched his leg, tearing his pants, but it also reminded him of the dagger that he had strapped at his side.

Thinking fast he pulled it out with his wounded hand and slashed with it at her leg, while his sword blocked her attack. His dagger hit the mark. Clarisse pulled back in surprise, a small cry of pain escaping her lips. "That's cheating!"

Dodging and blocking the large amount of arrows that got fired at him now there was less chance of hitting Clarisse, he chuckled dryly. "No, no it's not."

Clarisse was just about to come at him with yet another hard, anger-fuelled slash, when the sound of Chiron blowing on the conch horn interrupted their fight. Everyone abruptly stopped, who'd won?

Sparing a glance at Clarisse Luke ran to the place the sound came from, followed close by the Apollo guys and a slightly limping Clarisse.

Luke quickly recognized the cheering of the blue team, especially the Aphrodite kids were cheering hard. When he arrived at the clearing he saw the reason. The banner where the boar and spear from Ares' cabin had been before was now decorated with a white dove on a pink background filled with hearts.

Holding the banner proudly above her head was Silena Beauregard, surrounded by the whole blue team.


	11. Memories Yet to be Made(?)

It was like he was dying and his life flashed before his eyes. Except, Luke wasn't dying and this weren't his own memories he saw. Not yet, at least. Maybe never. More about that dying part later, though.

The first scene of the dream had already been quite alarming. He had seen himself, yes, himself. Like he was a ghost looking at his past life. It was creepy at first, but Luke soon noticed that he was a bit younger than the dream version. Not more than one year, but it made him wonder whether this was really going to happen or if it was just a pointless dream. Instinctively, he knew that this wasn't one of his now regular dreams, this wasn't one that he shared with Percy. This dream was meant for him and him alone.

Luke – the older one - was leaving camp. A backpack was slung over his shoulder as he turned to a worried looking Annabeth. "I'll be fine, don't worry. It won't take long." He reassured her with a smile.

"How do you know for sure? Quests can be dangerous, you know? Especially one like yours." Luke gaped open mounted at Annabeth. He got himself a quest? But that is amazing!

"Well, if there's anyone who can do it, it'd be me." He smirked confidentially. "Anyway, it's too late to back out now. I've already told Hermes I'd do it."

Annabeth sighed. "You're right. I just wish you had someone going with you, instead of being alone in this."

"You can't go with me, it's not safe." Luke agreed with his hopefully-future-self.

"My point exactly! It's not safe, all the more reason for someone to go with you."

"Annie, I've got to do this alone." He sighed. "I promise I'll come back."

"Safe?" Annabeth raised a disbelieving yet hopeful eyebrow.

Luke saw himself struggle to find the right words, only to decide that there wasn't really a right answer to this. He'd either lie or give her more reasons to worry. So he settled on a small smile her way and a hastily uttered "See you." before he turned away and left for his quest.

Luke tried to follow himself, too curious about the quest, but found that he was unable to. Instead he had to watch with Annabeth as his other self left on a dangerous adventure. When he was out of sight, Luke found himself in a totally different place.

The trees wee now replaced by high walls, but Annabeth was still there. She wasn't alone, though. He saw himself and a few other demigods in a place he could safely assume was Mount Olympus, if the several thrones were anything to go by. With a shock he realized that there was a big difference between him and the new dream version. He was yet again a bit older, this time maybe even three years. But that wasn't what shocked him the most.

The skin from his eye to his chin was pale, and upon closer investigation Luke discovered that it was because of a deep scar. He shivered, who had done that to him? Luke got the feeling that it wasn't just some random camper who'd gotten 'lucky' while fighting him. Shaking of the uneasiness he looked around at what was going on.

It frustrated him to no end that he couldn't hear anything that was being said, but the demigods were looking around in barely disguised awe. Which was understandable, considering they'd probably never been at Olympus before. Luke was impressed by the numerous details in the throne room and was very disappointed that the dream was too vague to see everything clearly. As far as he could see it was beautiful, though. A bit of an overkill, maybe.

Sitting on the thrones were all the Olympians and Hades, a sight he'd never thought he'd see. Why where they here? Did the gods invite them to show them they do care? Luke saw himself glancing around the room, as if he were searching for something. He wasn't being too obvious - if Luke didn't know himself that well he'd just think he was admiring the decorations or something like that – which meant that whatever he was looking for was not meant for others to see.

Luke studied his own, scarred face carefully. Was that anxiety he saw? Was he nervous? It sure looked like it. What could he be looking for that made him nervous, if the twelve gods in front of him didn't? If anyone noticed his feelings, no one commented on it. Especially the gods weren't paying attention to him. They weren't even so much as looking at the demigods!

The Olympians, the rulers of the West, were bickering among each other like little kids! He of course didn't actually hear the curses and shouting, but looking at their faces and wildly gesturing hands, it wasn't hard to figure out what was going on. Luke now understood why the world was in such a bad state; at this rate they'd never get anything done!

Luke looked back at himself, just in time to see a power hungry glint enter his eyes. He'd found it. His eyes kept returning to two places in the room. Luke followed his dream version's eyes. Once it flickered to Hades' 'throne'. Or rather, an item at the foot of the throne. Luke recognized it easily as the Helm of Darkness. The other item was the Master Bolt. Why was his older self so interested in them? He wasn't planning anything, right? Knowing himself he probably was.

Suddenly all the gods were gone, and so were most of the demigods. The Thrones were unoccupied, some of them even damaged. Turning to the hearth, Luke couldn't believe what he saw.

His older self was lying on the ground with Percy, Annabeth and Grover hovering over him, a black circle of ash surrounded them. Luke couldn't see clearly what was wrong with him, but his left side was covered with blood. It looked fatal, Luke wondered if he really got to watch himself die. They exchanged words, but once again Luke couldn't hear what was being said. I was like everything happened on fast forward.

As in a daze he watched as his other, scarred self died, his head shooting up as he suddenly heard the words that he had uttered, the last words he'd say. "Ethan. Me. All the unclaimed. Don't let it… Don't let it happen again." He'd grabbed Percy's sleeve, demanding his attention.

"I won't, I promise." Percy said.

Dream Luke nodded, and as he died, Luke woke up gasping for air.

He had not noticed that the blade that had killed his dream self, was in fact the dagger he'd gotten from Halcyon Green and the one he later passed on to Annabeth. He also hadn't noticed that the spot under his left arm was a strange place to get stabbed, since it usually would be protected by his armor. All in all, he didn't even know of half the things that'd lead to that moment. The moment he'd died a hero, even after having chosen the life of a traitor. If Luke had seen it all - had remembered more details about the dream - who knows what would've happened differently. But he hadn't.

Luke wiped the sweat from his forehead, was that his future? Was that how he was supposed to end? He didn't know if it was a good thing or not, maybe both. Judging by his final words and Percy promise, it would change things for the better at camp. But what had led to his death? How did the unclaimed have anything to do with it?

He tried not to think of the last thing he'd seen in that dream, his own lifeless body. Instead, he focused on recalling the two other dreams that he'd remembered having. Was he going on a quest? Luke wondered what it was for. It could be about anything, really. Saving someone from a monster, retrieving an item somewhere far away, killing a monster that's been causing ruckus in the mortal world… Luke had a small smile on his face, it certainly was an exciting thing to look forward too. If only the dream was real- No. The smile disappeared. If that dream was real, than so was his death. Again, his thoughts led him to that third dream of his.

The throne room looked like there had been some serious fighting going on there. Question was, between whom and what for? Did it have anything to do with his previous encounter on Mount Olympus?

Only now when he was awake did Luke realize that is must have been the winter solstice, Hades had been there. And Luke had been subtly glancing at the Helmet of Darkness and the Master Bolt. It was the same way he imagined his face must look when he was planning his next great theft. But even in a dream he'd never be crazy enough to do something like that, right? Everyone knew that stealing from the gods was a bad idea. Stealing from two gods - both of them of the Big Three - was just asking to get killed in the most painful of ways, only to rot away in the Fields of Punishment forever once he entered the Underworld. Maybe even worse.

So what was going on inside his other self's head? Luke could hardly think of any good reasons to do something as dangerous as that.

 

Hermes groaned in frustration. It hadn't worked as well as he'd hoped it would. The dreams were too short to really understand, but he couldn't flat out tell him that he was fated to turn on the gods. That would count as interfering. He was already pushing it by having asked Morpheus to help him alter his son's dreams, in hope of changing his future.

In return, he'd try to get Morpheus more recognition, which was harder than he'd though it'd be. So far, he hadn't made any progress yet. The god of sleep however, held up his end of the deal by sending Luke a special dream every night. Hermes had gotten concerned, though, when the god had once shown up personally in Luke's dream. He'd been afraid that Morpheus would tell Luke that it was in fact his father who was responsible for all this

Instead, he'd hinted him that there was another god involved in this mess. Hermes knew that it was meant as a warning. Keep your promise to me or else…

He'd rather not finish that sentence. There were so many things that could go wrong if he failed to help Morpheus. Word could get out that he was trying to alter his son's fate – or worse, he'd take it out on Luke by sending him nightmares only. Who knows, maybe he'll even do both!

It could all be prevented if Zeus would just allow them to interfere with their kids, and maybe some other things too, but really, in the end it all came down to that stupid rule.

"Can you try the same thing again another time?" He asked Morpheus, who'd come to see him at his request. Most of the dreams where Morpheus' idea, but today Hermes had wanted to try another approach. A more direct one. Instead of changing the way Luke thinks about the gods by sending him to Percy (they agreed that Percy was without a doubt loyal to them, he was the child of the prophecy after all), he wanted to let him see the things that he didn't want to happen. Present it like some alternate future, something Luke would want to prevent.

It may have backfired, though. The fragments he'd shown weren't clear or convincing enough. And he got the feeling Morpheus had added one of his own without informing Hermes about it.

"I can, however I suggest you consider letting me send him something more detailed and longer next time. Really, I know what you want to tell him, but even to me it's a bit vague!" Morpheus complained.

"No, you can't." He shook his head refusing. "Don't let him see too much. We can't just tell him the future, I myself don't even know of everything that will happen to him." Hermes paused, deciding whether or not he should inform him of his suspicions. "But you know more about it, don't you? All those dreams you control, there must be a lot of visions too. Even tonight, when I asked you to do something, you added a dream without letting me know what it was about."

Morpheus shrugged, though his smirk contradicted the nonchalant movement. "Maybe I know more about the future than most others, and maybe I don't. Either way, I won't share the information without getting something in return." He raised an eyebrow accusingly.

"I haven't forgotten about it, you know? I'm trying."

"Try harder, at this rate you'll never know what the first dream was about. Which means, you also don't know of a huge mistake you're about to make."

Hermes knew better than to try to get any more out of the other god. To be honest, he was lucky that Morpheus hadn't stopped sending the dreams already. "Look, tomorrow I'll suggest to give the other gods a bit more credit. Again. That's all I can do for now."

But what mistake was Morpheus talking about? Should he try harder to let Luke know he cared? Even if he wanted to, there was no easy way to do that. Luke hated him and wouldn't accept a simple apology. Maybe a present?

Hermes almost snorted at the thought. His son would never let his loyalty, love and trust be bought by a cheap present. Probably not even an expensive one. Then it hit him. He knew what he should give Luke to make things up to him. The one thing he knew his son longed for: An adventure.


	12. The Gods Know

The first thing Hermes noticed as he appeared in front of his cabin was how old and shabby it looked. Had it really been that long since he had last visited camp?

Hesitating for a moment, he opened the door, mentally preparing himself for what he was about to witness.

The inside of the cabin was cramped. People were sleeping on the floor, because there weren't enough beds. Hermes gravely took in the sight before him. If only the gods would just claim their children. He didn't mind taking all the unclaimed demigods and children of minor gods in, but it was saddening to see the amount of demigods who had nowhere else to go.

If only he had permission to expand the cabin a bit… He shook his head. Zeus would never allow that. Interference, he would call it, and he forbid the gods from interfering with the lives of their children.

Hermes shook himself out if his thoughts, surprised to see almost every head in the cabin turned in his direction. He scanned their faces, reading the various emotions displayed on it. Wariness. Confusion. Surprise. Hope. Fear. Anger. Indifference. He winced at the last three. Had he really screwed up that much? He tried to convince himself that it was entirely his father's fault, but his heart wasn't in it. All the gods were to blame for this, including him.

He cleared his throat awkwardly, already feeling guilty about leaving so soon and without changing anything about their current way of living.

"Luke, can I speak to you for a moment?" He asked, but it took a moment to find the person his question was directed at.

Luke sat up from his bed. His face was morphed into one of hidden excitement, confusing Hermes a great deal. Had his son forgiven him? But then a scowl formed itself on Luke's face. The god blinked at the sudden change. Luke nodded tightly, quickly putting on some shoes before stepping outside. As Hermes closed the door, he couldn't help but glance inside once more, already regretting his choice to do nothing for the children inside.

"What is it you wanted me for?" Luke questioned him, staring boldly in Hermes' eyes.

"Walk with me, son." Luke frowned slightly, probably at being called 'son', but nodded.

They headed off for the woods, walking in silence for a moment. At last, when Luke repeated his previous question, The Messenger God started explaining what he wanted to talk about.

"It has come to my attention that you seem a little… bored."

Luke raised an eyebrow. "Maybe I am."

"So it's true, then?" Hermes asked to be sure.

"I suppose you could say that, yes," Luke answered smoothly, feigning indifference. "I am already considered the best swordsman at camp, among other things."

Hermes smiled faintly, he was aware of that. Yet, he wasn't going to tell his son he was proud of him. Luke wouldn't have believed him anyway. "In that case, would you like to do something more challenging?"

Luke's eyes shone with anticipation, recalling the dream he had last night. Was it actually coming true, then? "That sounds good," the demigod admitted with a smirk. "Are you saying what I think you are saying?"

Hermes nodded slowly, his lips forming into a grin. "I think so, yes. But just to be clear, I'm giving you a quest."

"Well, who am I to decline that, father." Luke gave up on acting calm and allowed some joy and gratitude to appear on his face. "But first I'd like to know what kind of quest it is."

It was then that Hermes started doubting his plan. "Well, about that… It's something that has already been done before. You don't mind, do you?" Hermes asked cautiously, awaiting Luke's reaction.

To his horror, the excitement seemed to fade away a bit. Luke slowed down, coming to a complete stop. Was he reconsidering taking this quest? Hermes couldn't let that happen. "But you must understand that this is very important, even if some wouldn't consider it a real 'quest'." He tried to regain his son's previous eagerness to go on the quest.

Luke looked doubtful, but turned to face his father. "Well, what is it then?"

Hermes took a deep breath. This was the moment that could change the course of his son's live, for better or worse.

"I want you to get Perseus Jackson safely to camp."

Never had Luke looked so shocked before, his eyes were marginally bigger than before and his mouth was agape. "You-you want me to…" he stared shell-shocked at the god in front of him.

Hermes wasn't sure if his reaction was a good one or not, but it was too late to reconsider now. "Percy Jackson, nine years old, lives in New York."

Luke finally came out of his shocked state. "Are you sure he will be happier at camp than at home?" Luke remembered his conversation with Morpheus. He'd told him that it was best to wait till Percy loses his mother, or something like that.

"It is time," He said simply, happily noticing that Luke didn't seem to mind the quest that much anymore. He started walking again. It only took a moment for Luke to unfreeze and catch up with him.

"Why does Percy need an escort? Is he in danger?" Luke asked worried for his new-found friend.

"Not exactly, but now he will be." Hermes replied, looking around as if he was searching for somebody.

"Why?" Luke narrowed his eyes distrusting, searching the immortal's face for answers.

"Because now everyone knows he is my son." An unfamiliar voice said.

Alarmed, Luke looked up. It was only then that he noticed that they were no longer in the woods, but on the beach. "Lord Poseidon?"

"That's me." The stranger didn't look like Luke had expected. Well, actually he did. He had black hair and sea green eyes, like Percy. But his clothes were a huge surprise, he was dressed like a tourist on Hawaii. So that meant that Percy is a son of Poseidon. Luke couldn't say he was surprised, he had after all already suspected it. "Thank you for going on this quest."

Luke didn't stop to think about that a god had just thanked him, one of the big three nonetheless. He was thinking about Percy. "But what's the sudden rush, why does he have to go to camp now?

"I wanted to send him to camp years ago, but his mother refused. She loves Percy too much to risk not seeing him anymore. Seeing that I had no choice but to agree with her, I didn't send anyone to get my son to camp. Until now. Your father convinced me that it would be better if Percy learnt how to take care of himself early on, instead of giving him a chance at a normal childhood. Well, as normal as it can get, being who he is," Poseidon explained.

"What about his mother? Am I supposed to convince her of this or do you expect me to kidnap Percy away from her?" Luke didn't like either option. The first one sounded impossible, and the second one just plain cruel. He had seen first-hand how much she loves Percy, and Percy her.

"I don't think you'll have to do much convincing. She only wishes the best for our son. Sally will understand," Poseidon reassured him. "The hard part will be the monsters that are after Percy. After today, the gods will know that he exists. You can imagine that some of them won't be very pleased by him, or me."

Normally, Luke wouldn't have minded the monsters that much, but they were targeting Percy. Luke couldn't let Percy get hurt by them. Luke looked at the two gods in front of him. Without having to ask, they both knew he was taking the 'quest'.

"Where can I find him?" Luke questioned determined.

"He is at Montauk beach with Sally."

Luke nodded. "I'll leave tomorrow."

 

It was dark outside. Luke could hear the sound of waves crashing against the shore. He was standing inside a cabin with the lights off. Despite that, he could see clearly. Instinctively, he knew that this was Montauk beach, and sleeping peacefully in the crib in front of him was Percy.

Luke took a curious step forward. He'd never seen Percy as a baby before, the youngest he'd come to that was toddler-Percy. He had an innocent, smooth face only babies could have, and his short dark hair was unruly as ever. He looked so small and vulnerable.

Luke heard a sound from behind him, and quickly stepped to the other side of the crib. Even though it was just a dream, Luke could still feel the power of the god that had entered the room. He also noted that his appearance hadn't changed at all in the nine years that had past since this moment.

Poseidon stood at the spot were previously Luke had been. He took in the sight of the sleeping baby, the love he felt for his child clearly displayed on his face. "Perseus," he whispered softly, gently. "My son."

Luke contemplated leaving the room to give the two some privacy, but thought better of it. Whatever Poseidon had to say, it would do no harm for him to hear. Yet, it felt like he was intruding.

Poseidon brushed some hair out of Percy's face. "I'm so sorry I can't be there for you in the future." His voice was filled with regret. It sounded sincere to Luke, something that surprised him greatly. "Please try to understand that if it were for me, I would stay here to help raise you."

Percy's eyelids fluttered. Slowly, he opened his sea green eyes and looked into the identical pair of eyes of his father. Luke heard Poseidon gasp at the similarity.

The baby tilted his head a few inches, examining the stranger before him. Slowly but surely a smile spread across his small face. A hand clumsily reached out to his father. He said something in the weird language only babies could understand, but still managed to get the message across. Poseidon's hand grabbed Percy's carefully, making sure not to squeeze too hard.

The two stared at each other in silence, both smiling. Again, Luke felt like he was intruding. However, he knew that this was important for him to see. It was prove that at least some gods care about their children. Luke understood that now, though he still disapproved of their way of showing it. Only for a second the bitter thought that Percy probably wouldn't remember this precious moment between him and his father crossed his mind. At least he cares enough to break the rules twice, Luke thought. The first time being the moment Percy was conceived. The second time being this, paying a visit to the demigod.

"I can't stay for long, my son." Poseidon informed Percy. Percy blinked up at him, not comprehending the words. He did notice the way it was said, though. The man sounded sad. "I have to go back soon or they'll notice I'm gone."

Percy's grip on one of his fingers tightened as if he understood his father was going to leave him. "I'm sorry my boy."

With a look of longing, he gently pried his hand out of Percy's surprisingly strong hold. "I won't see you again for a while, perhaps you'll forgive me for that one day."

"Stay save, Perseus. My son." Poseidon took one last look at the baby in front of him before he turned around and walked out of the room. Percy effortlessly tried to reach for the retreating back of the man. When he found that didn't work, he started crying.

He silently stood by and watched as an exhausted Sally Jackson picked Percy up, whispering soothing things in his ear.

"Hush, hush, Percy, hush. Don't cry, mommy doesn't like it when you cry." She stroked a few tears away. "Are you hungry?" Percy of course didn't respond, but some mother instinct told Sally all she needed to know. "You're feeling lonely, aren't you?"

After a few moments Percy's tears slowed down and eventually stopped. Sally stayed with him for the rest of the night. Luke, however, didn't. He went on to the next part of the dream, a few years later.

"It's time to get out of the water, Percy!" Sally shouted over the sound of the incoming waves. Most parents wouldn't let their child swim with the cold weather, but Sally had discovered a long time ago that Percy didn't mind the temperature. That didn't mean she wouldn't keep an eye on any signs of hypothermia. Just to be sure. Another thing that came in handy was Percy's ability to breathe under water, although he had almost given her a heart attack when she'd first found out.

Luke watched in amusement as toddler-Percy scrunched up his face in annoyance. "But I don't want to," He complained as another wave hit him in the back. He remained standing, something that children his age normally weren't able to.

"It's getting dark, don't you want to have a nice, warm campfire?"

Percy considered this for a moment. "Yeah… I do."

"Then come here and dry off, you can swim some more tomorrow. I've got marshmallows for by the fire." That was an offer Percy simply couldn't refuse.

"I'm coming!" He promised, before quietly saying, "Bye Mr. Dolphin." Then he hurried out of the water, unknowingly using it to push him forward a bit.

"Good boy." Sally smiled at him. "Let's get you inside so you can dry up."

Percy nodded, excited at the prospect of the campfire. He sprinted to the door. The faster he dried of the faster he'd be roasting marshmallows.

Sally laughed at his antics and turned to face the ocean. Curious enough, there was a dolphin swimming circles near the spot where Percy had been a minute ago. She shook her head. Things like this shouldn't really surprise her anymore. "Thank you for looking after him." She said to the sea, before turning around and following Percy inside.

Luke quickly slipped though the door as it closed, having heard what Sally said.

"Percy, come here so I can dry you of!"

Percy walked out of his room holding a towel. "But I am dry already!"

Sally raised a disbelieving eyebrow, but upon inspection she saw that he was indeed dry. "All right, then. I'll get the marshmallows."

As she walked to the small kitchen, she seemed to age a few years right before Luke's eyes. Out of one of the kitchen cabinets she pulled out a bag of blue marshmallows, another cabinet contained several blue snacks and candies.

She took them outside, where a small but warm fire was already burning. Sitting in front of it was Percy, who looked nine years old. Luke quickly realized that this must be really close to the present, maybe even yesterday?

"Look what I've got," Sally said as she handed Percy some of the food. "Surprisingly, quite a few stores sell sweets with a blue color, it wasn't that hard to find these."

Percy's eyes lit up. "Thank, Mum! This is great!"

Sally smiled back at him. They sat there for a long time, talking to each other. Luke listened with great interest to the stories that were told and the conversations that were held. One in particular spiked his interest. Apparently, Percy's mother had told him that his father was 'lost at sea'. Luke had to laugh when he heard her say it. It was quite clever of the mortal woman, he had to give her that.

 

What had been a nice sunny day, had unexpectedly turned into a dark, stormy night. The Olympian gods and goddesses were being called to an emergency meeting, making several of them worried enough to actually hurry to get to Olympus on time. One after another they appeared in the throne room, nervously awaiting the others.

Poseidon and Hermes were the last to arrive. Both of them took their time to get to their thrones, making Zeus even redder in the face. His accusing glare constantly shifted between the two of them.

After a few minutes of being awkwardly stared at, Poseidon cleared his throat. "Is there anything you wish to ask me, brother? If not, I'll just go-"

"YOU HAVE SPAWNED A SON!" Zeus bellowed angrily, his grip on his Master Bolt tightening. "YOU BROKE THE OATH!"

Poseidon didn't even flinch. "So did you, a few years ago." He remarked.

"But I didn't send a demigod to help Thalia!"

"If I remember correctly, father," Hermes interrupted, "Luke was with her, too. Not to forget the satyr and a young daughter of Athena."

"That is because my dear brothers send monsters after her," Zeus defended, narrowing his eyes hatefully at Poseidon. "So what should stop me from sending them after your spawn?"

"I didn't send any monsters!" Poseidon argued. "That was Hades, and he had all the right to after you murdered his children and their mother!"

"That doesn't matter. The point is that it would be unfair if your kid gets the privilege of a safe trip to camp." The King of the Gods spit out angrily.

"Is that a threat?" Poseidon growled dangerously.

"Yes it is."

The sea god jumped up from his throne with his trident in the hand. "I'm warning you, Zeus. If one of your monsters hurt my son, I'll declare war on you!"

Zeus narrowed his eyes, trying to act impassive to the other's threat. "So shall it be then. Just know that it won't stop me from sending monsters after your illegal child." With a dramatic flash of thunder he disappeared, leaving behind the other Olympians. Most of which hadn't even spoken a single word since the meeting started.

Hera shook herself from her shocked state. "You're dismissed," she said, before she too left the room.

"Uncle P, did you really mean what you said?" Apollo asked him warily, uncharacteristically serious.

"Fighting among ourselves doesn't solve anything." Athena chastised him.

"Uh, yes it does," Poseidon countered. "It keeps my son, the one who is prophesied to be our only hope, safe from my brother."

"He won't be safe if you lose the war." Athena reminded him.

"Who says I'll lose? It wouldn't surprise me if Hades would agree with me that Zeus should stay away from our kids."

"Guys, stop!" Hermes interrupted. "There is no war, yet. There is only going to be one if Zeus hurts Percy, which is something my son will try to avoid at all costs."

"So you're saying that, if your son fails we'll have a war?" Ares asked intrigued. This meeting had suddenly turned interesting.

Hermes winced, had he just brought the war god to an idea? "I wouldn't exactly put it like that…"

Ares nodded with a cruel smirk. "Interesting."

"Hermes is right, for once." The goddess of wisdom said thoughtfully. "The war can easily be prevented if Zeus doesn't hurt Percy. Or if Barnacle Beard would just be mature enough to understand that his son isn't worth declaring war over."

"Don't forget that I'm older than you, Owl Head!"

"That just proves the theory that maturity does not come with age alone, nor does wisdom."

"Stop fighting, you two. Now, I believe Athena said something about me being right?" The god of thievery reminded them.

Athena frowned displeasingly at Poseidon, but explained her idea. "As I was saying, perhaps we should just await Zeus' next move. And then, depending on if the Sea Spawn gets hurt or not, we shall see what the next move will be."

Mumbled agreements filled the room. Seeing as they'd been dismissed several minutes before and the conversation seemed to have come to an end, they started leaving. Soon, only Poseidon and Athena where left.

For a moment Athena hesitated, before turning to face Poseidon. "Do you really think that a child the age of nine would like it if hundreds, if not thousands of people would be killed in a war started because of him? Did you even stop to consider that your son might not like living in a warzone?"

Poseidon looked ready to defend himself, but instead his shoulders sagged slightly in defeat. "No, I did not."

"Well, maybe you should ask him his opinion once you see him again." Without waiting on a reply, Athena teleported away.


	13. The Fire at Montauk

Luke got out of the cab, taking in the sight of the beach before him. It was a stormy day and the waves came crashing down with a loud roar. Had he been a mortal he would've written it off as coincidence, but he, being a demigod, knew better. The gods weren't happy. Namely Zeus.

Luke was surprised that he'd gotten there in one piece. He'd just gotten into a cab and told the driver were to drop him off. But it didn't reassure him. It only meant that he wasn't Zeus' main target. His main target was sitting in the familiar rental cabin. Last night, he'd been there in his dream. It was the same one as years ago.

With determined steps Luke approached the cabin. So far so good, he thought to himself. No booby traps, no monsters…

He knocked on the door, three times, and waited anxiously. He half expected a monster to open the door, but his paranoia seemed to be just that. Paranoia. Sally Jackson opened the door. She regarded him suspiciously, but not unfriendly. "Can I help you?"

During the whole ride to Montauk, Luke had been going over ways to explain what he needed to do. Ways to convince Percy's mom, and Percy himself, that he needed the son of Poseidon to go to camp. Now-standing just outside the cabin, ominous looking clouds overhead and a raging sea behind him-he knew that there wasn't enough time to slowly ease them into agreeing with him. "Hi, I'm Luke Castellan, son of Hermes. May I come inside, please? Your lives are in danger."

She didn't smile back, but she did welcome him in. Sally looked outside warily, before closing the door and locking it.

She led him to the comfy couch where Percy was sitting. "Percy, could you give us some privacy, please?"

Percy looked up confused. "Mum, what's going on? Who is he?"

"Don't you recognize me? It's me, Luke," he said. "We met in a dream a few days ago?"

"Maybe," Percy said, scrunching up his nose in thought. "Yes, I think I remember. You saved me. Thank you."

Luke turned to Sally, who was understandably confused by now. "Sit down, Mrs. Jackson. I've got some important news. You too, Percy."

They obediently sat down on the couch, and Luke pulled out one of the chairs to sit down opposite of them.

"Look, there's no easy way to say this, but it's not safe here anymore. Percy, you're a demigod. Your father isn't lost at sea, he's Poseidon," Luke said. "He's the Greek god of the sea. You know the Greek gods?" Luke recalled some of his earlier dreams were Sally would tell Percy a child-friendly Greek myth. Surely Percy knew the basics, right?

Percy nodded proudly. "Mum tells me stories about them sometimes. But," Percy trailed off. "But my father?"

Luke looked at Sally expectantly. "Percy, it's true," she admitted. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier, but it's true. All the myths I told you, the gods, they are real." Sally pulled her son into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry, Percy."

Percy looked a little lost. "What does that mean?"

Here was the part were Luke took over again, seeing as Sally was mentally preparing herself for the inevitable goodbye. "Your dad is alive. But that's not everything. You have inherited some of his powers, mainly over water."

"Dad's alive?" the nine-year-old said amazed. "But, that's great! Mummy, he's alive!"

Sally bit her lip but forced a small smile on her face. "Yes, he's alive."

"Percy," Luke said carefully. "There is a place where you can practice your powers, be with people like you. People like me. But you'll have to leave for some time."

"I have to leave?" Percy echoed. "But… My mum's coming, too?"

His mother still hadn't releases him from the hug, but she did loosen one hand to stroke his hair sorrowfully. "I can't, Percy. You'll be fine without me," Luke didn't know if she was reassuring herself or Percy. "Camp is safe, staying with me isn't."

Percy looked ready to argue, but Luke tried to reason with him. "If you stay here, your mother will be in danger, too." He hated himself for saying it, but it was the truth.

"What kind of danger?" Percy asked as he looked at his mom fearfully. Outside, buckets of water began crashing down.

"The gods are real, but so are the monsters. They want to hurt you. They can smell demigods. If you stay here, they'll come."

"They will hurt you, Mum?" Percy's lips trembled. "I don't want you hurt."

Sally pulled him tight once again. "Then you have to go to camp. It'll be fun, really. And you won't lose me forever. We can still see each other, if you want to."

"Camp is a great place," Luke told Percy, but he had his doubts whether it was true or not. Still, Percy needed to hear this. "I'm sure that you will make lots of friends."

"Really?" Percy looked up at him with wide, trusting eyes. "You think so?"

Luke didn't want to lie again, so he said, "I know someone your age, her name is Annabeth. I'm sure you'll get along just fine."

Percy nodded hesitantly. "Okay, I'll come with you to camp. But I still want to see my mum, can you promise that?"

Luke smiled warmly at him. "I'll make sure of it. Promised."

"Luke, can I speak to you for a minute?" Sally suddenly stood up alarmed.

"Yeah, sure." Luke also stood up and followed her to the kitchen.

"Why now?" she asked. "Couldn't this have waited a few years? He's still so young."

Luke shook his head. "The younger he starts the more chance he has at surviving. Besides, it's too late now. The gods know. Zeus knows." As if on cue, there was a flash of lightning, followed suit by the sound of thunder. "We have to get him to safety as soon as possible."

Sally paled. "Zeus will try to kill him."

Luke nodded gravely. "I'm afraid he will. You don't have much time to say goodbye; a storm is approaching rapidly."

A sudden red glow from outside interrupted whatever Sally wanted to say. She hurried to a window and gasped. "Fire."

"Go get Percy, I'll try to put it out." Luke ordered. "Where's the fire hose?"

"I'll do it, you get Percy. This can't be a coincidence."

Luke knew what she meant, there were all kinds of fire-breathing monsters that could've done this. He found Percy sitting on the couch, looking deep in thoughts. "Percy, we have to go!"

"What? But my mum…"

"No time, there is a monster. She is putting out a fire, but you must go. I'll go find her as soon as you're out of danger."

That got Percy up and running. But not far. As soon as they opened the door, they saw what had caused the fire.

The monster had a huge goat's body, but the head of the goat was on his back instead of where a head usually is. That place already had a lion's head with bloody red mane. The tail was a snake with sharp fangs that had venom seeping down from them, the drops glistering in the light of the fire.

"Go to your mother, Percy," Luke said urgently, his heart beating like crazy. "Tell her it's a chimera and that you have to run. I'll meet you later."

All the color had left Percy's face, but he shook his head defiantly. "No, you'll get eaten!"

"And so will you if you don't go! Get your mother and run. Now, Percy!" With relief Luke watched as Percy finally listened and ran.

Without giving himself time to change his mind, Luke pulled out his sword and ran to face the chimera. The snake turned to face Percy, but Luke had the full attention of the lion and the goat heads. Which wasn't all that good news for him. Both heads breathed fire at him, forcing him to jump out of the way. He landed smoothly with a roll, and tried to cut off the snake, which was still distracted by Percy. But all the heads were working together flawlessly.

His sword almost fell out of his hand when the goat slammed his head against Luke's arm. One of its hooves kicked him off his feet, sending him sprawling to the ground. Another kick had him soaring through the air, nearly impaling himself with his sword as he landed, which would've been a very tragic way to die.

"Luke, look out!" He heard Percy scream from afar.

Luke lifted his head to see what it was he had to look out for. A stream of fire was heading his way rapidly. Luke tried to push himself up, but knew that he'd never make it in time. The fire was going to burn him to a heap of ashes.

Yet, it didn't.

A wave of water drenched the fire and the chimera. It roared, bleated and hissed in fury, three pairs of angry eyes turned to face the son of Poseidon. Luke also turned to Percy, and saw a Camaro fast approaching him. The car came to a halt in front of him. "Quick, get in!" Sally told him and unlocked the car.

The second he was seated the car took off, followed closely by the chimera. "Are you hurt?" Percy asked him, turning to face Luke.

"Not at all." Luke lied. "Thank you for the water."

Percy smiled. "I'm not sure how I did it, but you're welcome."

"You know the way to camp?" Luke asked Percy's mom.

"Yes, I do."

The chimera roared loudly, making all three of them wince. "Mum, it's getting closer." Percy said concerned.

"I'm going as fast as I can, honey." Which probably wasn't very safe. The rain was still pouring down, making it hard to see where they were going.

"But not fast enough!" Percy screamed as the chimera ran even faster, almost side by side with the car.

There was a boom and a flash and suddenly they were upside down. Disoriented, Luke pulled himself out of the car. Once again, a fire was raging. But if it was caused by the chimera or the thunder wasn't clear. Luke was about to curse Zeus when he remembered that it probably wasn't the best thing to do right now. It would only give him more reason to be angry at them.

Sally was helping Percy out of the car when Luke saw the snake-end of the chimera lung for Percy. "Duck!" he shouted, but Percy was too dizzy by the car crash to react. His mother, however, did react. She jumped in between the snake and Percy, successfully protecting Percy from the snake.

As a result, the snake bit Sally and injected his venomous poison into her shoulder.

And that is when the Furies, send by Hades, came to the rescue.


	14. First Day of Camp

"And this is going to be your cabin, temporarily." Luke told Percy as they came to a stop in front of the old, brown building with a caduceus hanging above the door. "I sent everyone away for an hour, so it should be empty now."

Percy didn't respond. His face betrayed nothing, but his eyes still held that anguished look. It had been this way ever since they entered camp, which was almost a whole day ago.

Luke bit his lip, not sure how to approach the son of Poseidon. "Come, I'll show you your bed."

Percy's bed was, in fact, Luke's bed. Or at least, it used to be. But Luke didn't wish for the younger demigod to sleep on the floor, so he'd willingly given up his bed for a sleeping bag. Not that Percy knew, of course. It wouldn't do to make him feel guilty about it.

"This is were you'll be staying. You'll soon find out just how much this place is packed but don't worry, after you get claimed you can move to another cabin."

Where you'll be all by yourself. And don't forget to keep a close eye on your belongings here, for you'll be surrounded by thieves. The son of Hermes gave a mental sigh. He couldn't seem to think of something to say that would cheer Percy up. You'll like it here! Even though your first night was spend in the infirmary, blankly staring at the white wall in front of your bed.

"Give the boy some time and space," Chiron had told him. "He has just lost the only parent he has ever had." Which was only partially true. He had Gabe, his disgusting stepfather who hadn't really been the perfect example of a father figure. Far from it, actually.

But hey, what does Luke know about father figures? He's never had one, either. Hermes had been one of the gods who had screwed him over. Percy had been perfectly fine two days ago. Then Luke showed up at Montauk – a quest his father had sent him on - interrupting his little trip with his mother, to tell him his father is a Greek god. The same Greek god who now insisted on Percy's stay in cabin #11. To be fair, Poseidon hadn't said it directly, but he hadn't claimed Percy yet. Which was, totally unfair to Percy.

As if that wasn't enough crap, apparently Zeus was the one who send the Chimera after Percy. Or so the Furies had said. And wasn't that just ironic? The Lord of the Underworld and his servants were the ones who came to the rescue. Okay, so said lord didn't show up personally, but he sent a message along with the help.

Just after the snake tail sank its fangs in Sally Jackson's shoulder, they'd flown into battle, each tackling one of the animal heads of the Chimera.

Luke had looked at the fight with wariness. He could only hope that the Furies were meant to help them, and weren't going to be the next threat. Cause you never know with gods, do you?

When he'd looked over at Sally, he could see that she was trying her very best to stay conscious. The Chimera's poison is fatal. That's something Luke remembered learning at camp.

Percy, overcome with fear for his mother's life, shook of the pain caused by the car tipping over and gripped Sally's arm. "Mom, are you okay? He bit you!"

Luke wasn't sure if he should've approached them or given them some privacy. He could be wrong, maybe there was a way to save her. But he didn't know. What he did know, however, was that if he didn't do something fast, she'd be dead in a minute. Again, that led him to the problem that there was nothing to do to stop it. A day later and he still couldn't think of something that might've helped.

Sally looked pale, her face pulled into a tight grimace. Nonetheless, she was fully concentrated on the task at hand: getting Percy to safety. The fire had still been burning, it's smoke perhaps sending a signal to camp. Rain from above didn't help in putting the fire out at all, nor did it do any good to help in the battle. It just was there, as if knowing it couldn't do anything to help, yet it couldn't bear going away.

"You see that big tree over there? That's the entrance to camp, right there. Run as fast as you can. Yell for help." Sally spoke urgently, wasting no time.

"No, you're coming with me!"

"I can't. Please, Percy. All that I've ever wanted was to keep you safe. I'm so sorry for not having told you about your father, but you're everything I have. Please, Percy. Once you've crossed the tree you're safe." Sally kept insisting. She caught Luke's eyes. For a moment he'd thought she wanted him to leave them alone, but then she gestured for him to come closer.

She moved her face closer to Percy and said something too soft for Luke to hear. From Percy's reaction, however, he'd been able to gather that it was a goodbye. Sally knew. She knew it was poisonous. Lethal. But that hadn't stopped her from getting bitten in Percy's place. It had motivated her.

As Luke reached them, Sally embraced Percy for a last time and by the time she released him silent tears were making their way down his face. She grabbed his hands. "Go with Luke. Learn how to survive, but-" With a gasp she fell to the ground.

"No, Mom!" Percy knelt next to her on the grass, gripping her hands tightly. Luke remembered the way the fire had cast enough light over Percy's face for Luke to see the despair written all over. "I don't want you to go. I need you. Don't leave," he pleaded.

Sally had smiled sadly at him. Then, for the first time she addressed Luke, "Take care of Percy for me. Promise it."

Usually Luke wasn't one for promising things, they only led to disappointment. And yet, Sally and her son just seemed to have a way about them that made it impossible for him to refuse. Luke couldn't bring himself to say it. It had after all not even been an hour ago when he'd made a promise to Percy that he'd be able to see his mom even after he went to camp. Look at how well that turned out.

At least he didn't swear it on the River Styx.

"I promise I'll try," He had said instead, and put a hand on Percy's shoulder.

She looked at him searchingly. Luke looked back. She seemed so strong and healthy, the only hint of the poison inside her, making its way to her heart, was her pale skin and slow breathing. Suddenly she spoke to him, her voice strangely distant. "You know," She paused to take a raspy breath. "A parent is willing to go to great lengths in order to assure their child a better future."

Luke blinked in surprise, not understanding why she was bringing this up. He still didn't know what she'd been talking about. "Yes, and I'm sure you'll get into Elysium for it."

"That's not what I meant, but thank you." She smiled at him in approval. "I hope you'll know what I mean soon enough."

Her words were slowing down, each one taking more effort than the last. Luke had only been vaguely aware of the sounds the Chimera made when it fled, the Furies who had stayed behind, Chiron who came trotting up the hill and Percy's tears that remained unheard.

"I also…" She'd trailed of in a coughing fit.

Percy's hands clenched into fists, grabbing her hand tight as if it were her only link to the land of the living. He didn't say anything, though. His face looked almost as pale as his mother's.

She recovered from the coughing and continued without sparing a second, knowing that she didn't have many left. "Hope that you'll both join me there many years from now on."

She'd paused several times while saying that one sentence, Luke remembered as clear as day. Yet, he last thing she had said to Percy before she died - her heart no longer able to fight of the Chimera poison – she'd said without missing a beat. A soft mile on her face, her eyes glazed over.

"You will always be my little hero, Percy."

The hollow sound of someone knocking on the door sounded three times, bringing Luke back to the present. He looked at Percy, who was sitting worrisomely still on his bed, and then went to open the door, expecting to find one of his cabinmates who had forgotten something inside. Naturally, that wasn't who was standing behind the barely ajar door.

"My Lord," He tried to at least sound like he was being respectful. "Did you need something?"

"I wish to speak to my son. In private, please," The middle-aged looking god said.

The blonde-haired demigod felt anger well up inside of him but managed to suppress it. "I'll ask him if he wants to talk to you."

He closed the door without waiting for an answer, which could've gotten him incinerated had it been a moodier god at the door. Fortunately, "Your father is here, Percy."

Percy looked up, the first sign of acknowledgement Luke had gotten from him in a few hours.

"He wants to see you," Luke told him gently, not showing any of the bitter feelings he had for the God of the Sea. "You don't have to go, if you don't want to."

Percy's eyes were gazing unseeingly at him. Then he nodded. "I'll go."

His small form sat up from the bed and with surprisingly determined steps walked to the entrance. Luke opened the door for him, gazing suspiciously at Poseidon. The god didn't seem to notice, though. He was was fully focused on his son. "Perseus…"

"It's just Percy."

Luke felt faintly amused that even in a situation as serious and grave as this one, Percy still felt the need to correct everyone who called him by his full name. Or maybe it was just his way to tell his father he didn't trust him.

Poseidon kept his face neutral. "Percy. Let's go for a walk."

What is it with gods showing up at camp unannounced and demanding walks with their sons? Luke thought sarcastically.

Stepping inside the cabin again, he sat down on his former bed with his face resting on his hands. The silence inside the cabin seemed to stretch on forever and soon he found himself reminiscing the events of the day before again.

Chiron had reached them not long after Sally died. Once he did, things happened fast. Sally's body got taken care of, the fire was finally extinguished and the rain slowed down to a soothing drizzle.

The Furies had wanted to talk to him. Just to prevent misunderstandings. Apparently, Hades didn't send the Furies out of the goodness of his heart. What a surprise. He did it because he didn't want his kingdom overflowing with dead souls because his younger brothers decided to start WWIII. Saving Percy was just his way of achieving his goal. He still didn't like the 'Sea Spawn' as one of the Furies, the most hideous looking one, had said.

Then they'd gone back to the Underworld. Luke and Percy had been ordered to stay in the infirmary for one night, during which Percy had spoken as least as possible.

Despite that, Luke was more worried about the lack of crying. Once his mother had stopped breathing, the tears had stopped flowing.

Luke wasn't oblivious to what Percy was doing. He was trying to bury his feelings under a mask of stoicism. But Luke didn't know how to make him stop. He didn't want Percy to grieve over his mother this way. It felt too much like he was withdrawing himself from the world around him. Sally's words seemed to echo in his head. Take care of Percy for me.

But fact remained that Luke didn't know how to do as he'd promised. He would try, though. He would try his best, just like he'd promised.

By the time Percy got back from talking to his father it was time for dinner. The seagreen-eyed demigod sat at the edge of the bench, facing Luke who had deliberately situated himself opposite of Percy. It seemed that at least some progress had been made talking to his father; Percy wasn't staring hollowly ahead again. He was responsive, but not enjoying himself.

It was like watching a robot, Luke thought remorsefully. He was to blame for this. If only he hadn't gone on the quest. If only he had brought Percy to camp faster. If only he had been able to defeat the Chimera. If only…

As night fell, Luke sat down in front of the bonfire. The warmth of the fire spread across his skin. To his surprise, he felt a presence sit down left of him. It was Silena. And she looked worried.

"What are you planning to do about Percy?"

Luke looked at her in bewilderment. "What do you mean?"

"He is not like you described. Has it got something to do with his mother's death?" Silena seemed genuinely concerned for the boy who was a total stranger to her.

Luke grimaced. Looks like the news had spread. He looked around for Percy, mentally scolding himself for losing sight of him, and found him sitting by himself, staring into the fire.

"Yes it has," he said in response to Silena. "And I'm not sure what I can do about it."

"But, that's easy." Of course it was for her. "Talk to him. You're the only one that he knows in this new environment."

"We used to be friends, kinda. But I don't know if we still are. I brought him here. I am to blame for his mother's death." Luke admitted out loud gloomily. The fire didn't seem so warm him anymore, he felt chilled to the bone. "You know what's even worse? I promised him that he could see his mother, even after he went to camp with me."

Silena sighed. "Look at him." Luke did, and saw exactly the same image as he had before. "Do you really think he enjoys sulking like this? He doesn't. He needs someone to confide in. Talk to. That person should be you."

Luke didn't feel so sure about that. He looked at Percy again, but this time he wasn't alone anymore. He was talking to Annabeth.

"I think he's found someone to confide in," he told Silena.

She followed his line of sight and laughed. "Those two would make an awesome couple. But still, I think you should talk to him. Maybe tonight?"

"Maybe."

Maybe if they shared a dream again, yes. But Luke wasn't so sure that was going to happen now that Percy was at camp. At any rate he would find out in just a few hours.


	15. Grieving is Okay

Percy was already sound asleep, or at least pretending to be, when Luke crawled into his sleeping bag on the floor next to Percy's bed. The blond haired demigod had no idea what to expect that evening. It made him feel anxious, which in turn made it harder to fall asleep so he could just find out what his dream would be about.

With a frustrated groan Luke rolled over and pushed his face into his pillow. The silence in the cabin rang on, aside from the soft and sometimes not so soft snores from his roommates. He felt so tired and wanted to fall asleep so badly… Could Morpheus really be cruel enough to not grant him with some sleep that very night?

Luke pictured the god sitting in his palace on Olympus and laughing as he watched him suffer from his consciousness. Damn him.

Forcing himself to calm down he slowed his breaths, an old technique that almost always helped him sleep. All the muscles in his body relaxed and for a moment Luke felt at ease lying on the hard ground. That moment was cut short, though, when he heard soft sniffing coming from the bed to his left. He sat up alarmed but slowly to not startle the boy.

Percy lay with his back to Luke and the covers thrown over his head. Even in the dark the son of Hermes could see the racking form of the son of Poseidon curled up in fetus position.

"Percy," he whispered as he gently pulled the covers away. "It's me, Luke."

Percy stiffened, his tears lessening. "Leave me alone," he muttered weakly, trying to get his covers back.

But Luke being older was also stronger. "No, I'm not going to leave you when you obviously need me."

"I don't. I'm okay," Percy protested unconvincingly, his voice breaking halfway though the word 'okay'.

Luke reached out with his hand, turning Percy's face to him so he could look him right in the eye. "You are not okay. And that's fine. No one expects you to be okay after what happened. You are allowed to grieve, but please don't do it on your own."

Percy wiped the tears away and pulled himself upright. "Do you…" his voice quivered. "Do you really want to grieve with me?"

"I'd do anything for you."

The words escaped Luke before he could even register it. It sounded so obvious, but was surprising at the same time. Not once had he said that to someone without being sarcastic about it. Never mind actually meaning the words… This time, however, Luke actually spoke the truth. In his mind Luke knew that saying things like that would only result in more hurt later on. It was only a matter of time before he would let Percy down, that's just how he is.

"You promise?" Percy asked the feared question, his voice oozing hope and wonder.

Luke smiled grimly although Percy wouldn't be able to see it in the dark. "It's not a promise. It's a fact."

Luke absentmindedly wondered when he'd stopped listening to the logic of his mind in favor of his need to protect the young demigod. When Percy flung himself at him in a tight embrace, though, he found that he didn't mind it that much.

He comforted Percy as the sobs started again, but not by saying sweet nothings. Cause like he'd told Percy, it was not 'okay' to lose your mother. It was okay, however, to fall apart in your friend's arms over it. It was okay because Luke would be there to pick the pieces up again.

They'd both long lost track of time when Percy lost the ability to shed any more tears. It was then that Luke felt it appropriate again to talk. "Get some sleep, Percy. Don't worry about tomorrow, I'll make sure no one will disturb you."

Luke was about to move from his corner of the bed when Percy stopped him. "Stay, please? Just until I'm asleep."

Luke's gaze softened as he sat down on the bed again. "Okay. I'm here for you, Percy. Sweet dreams."

 

Morpheus was sitting in his apartment on Olympus, enjoying a good laugh over the poor demigod whom he had denied access to his realm, when the father of said demigod waltzed in uninvited, his face red with pent-up frustrations.

"What do you think you are doing, letting Luke stay up al night?" Hermes scowled.

"Well, isn't that funny, you sound like you actually care about the demigod." The God of Sleep tilted his head mockingly.

"I care about Luke more than you know!" he fumed.

"You do?" Morpheus said, seemingly dubious. "Because if that were really the case, you would've fulfilled my wishes already. It has been two weeks since we made the deal. I did what you wanted me to flawlessly, now it's your turn. If you don't do something soon..."

"Are you threatening to harm my son?"

If there had been a mortal in the room he would've been incinerated instantly from the amount of aggressive power Hermes radiated.

"Not directly. I do wonder, though, how long he can stand to be awake. Or even better, haunted by nightmares for the rest of his sorry life." Even more power filled the room, the godly auras clashing with each other. The air was thick with tension, ready to explode at any given moment.

The Messenger God had to give in once he considered the other's threat. He had been the one to approach Morpheus for a favor. That favor had turned into a deal and to be fair, Morpheus had been a great help. But Hermes hadn't gotten the easiest end of the deal.

"If you must know," he started begrudgingly, "I already spoke to my father about it briefly."

"Briefly?" Morpheus echoed unimpressed.

" _And_ I've asked a few of the other gods on the council to vote for our idea. Most of them agreed," he ended on a satisfied tone.

For the first time in their conversation Morpheus smiled. "Great, so it won't be long, then?"

"Well, my father hasn't agreed yet and we both know how he can get. I can't tell him everything at once or I'd risk his disapproval right from the start. And once he has decided something he's too stubborn to admit he was wrong."

That obviously displeased the other god. "Then what _are_ you telling him?"

"Right now I'm just informing him of the problems we are dealing with. Crammed cabins, thousands of complaints from gods and demigods alike, everything that would be solved by our idea." Hermes explained, having undergone a complete mood swing and even feeling a bit proud at his taking-it-slow method.

"Right, okay. So you tell him all of that, but not the actual plan. Why?" Morpheus inquired.

"Because I know my father. He likes to think himself the best in everything. I'll give him enough hints so he can think of the plan by himself. This way he'll be both willing and determined to do it."

"You're giving him all the credit for our idea." The god frowned.

"I know, but it's the only way." Hermes sighed. "Now that you know what I'm up to, let Luke finally get some well deserved rest. And young Perseus, too."

The God of Sleep waved his hand lazily. "Done. And that Perseus boy was already asleep, mind you. Though I doubt he enjoyed it much. I was in a particularly bad mood when he entered my realm…"

Hermes cast him one last suspicious look before he left.

 

Percy did _not_ have a sweet dream.

That became apparent the minute he entered his dream. First of all: Luke wasn't there. Second: he was back to the place where his mother died and it was storming again.

"Percy!" Someone cried out, the sound coming from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Percy recognized the voice, though. His eyes lit up with joy. "Mum! Where are you?"

He frantically spun around but was unable to find her.

"Over here!" Her voice sounded strained but it definitely came from his left this time. "Hurry up, Percy!"

The demigod turned and his heart stood still. Like she'd materialized out of thin air, there was his mother, looking like she had the day she died, her hands reaching out to her son. And there was a gigantic snake, the width of his body almost as big as Sally was, wrapped around her with his head looking down on her, his forked tongue inches from touching her face. The snake's tail went so far back that it disappeared in the darkness of the night.

"Help! Percy, help me!" she begged him.

His limbs suddenly weighed a ton, rooting him to the spot. Percy struggled to get to his mother. "Hang on!" he shouted.

A change seemed to go over his mother as she shook her head no. "You can't save me, Percy. I'm going to die because you couldn't save me."

"No!" Percy shook his head wildly in denial. "That's not true! I'll come for you…"

With all his might he tried to run. His effort paid off in the form of one small step forward. The second one wasn't easier. Percy gasped out in pain as the shadows pulled at his legs.

As he got closer the snake's attention shifted from his mother to him. It hissed in warning, the vibrations sending shocks through Percy's body. Its green scales glowed with a faint golden light. Venom dripped from his teeth. Where it hit the ground the grass instantly died, turning a sickening shade of yellow-brown sand.

"Don't come any closer," Sally warned her son. "I'm already dead. You can't save me."

"I can! I love you, Mum, don't leave me alone!" A lone tear escaped his eye. The snake lowered his head and came face to face with Percy. His eyes burned a harsh, malicious gold and looked at him with inhuman intensity. " _Come_ _clossser_ ," it hissed.

"No, don't, Percy!" A new voice joined the argument. Suddenly Luke stood in front of him, putting himself between the serpent and Percy. Not taking his eyes of the snake he spoke to the son of Poseidon, "It's just a dream, Percy. You can't bring your mother back. Not because you're too weak, but because it's not real."

" _Join_ _me_ ," a deep voice ordered from the dark. " _Come_ _closer_ …"

"Ignore the voice, Percy. Try to wake up." Luke said as calm as possible.

Percy hesitated. "My mum… I don't want to leave her."

"Listen to Luke!" Sally cried out, still trapped by the snake.

"We grieved together, remember? Your mother is dead. She's not real. This _dream_ is not real." Luke stood firmly facing the golden snake.

"Wake up, Percy."

 

Percy awoke with a gasp, immediately sitting upright in his, or rather Luke's, bed. Luke. He leaned over the form of the sleeping boy on the ground. Why hasn't he woken up yet? Percy was uncertain if he was supposed to wake him. Was he still trapped in the dream? The faint memory of golden eyes made him shiver.

"Luke," he softly called, shaking the older boy lightly. "Wake up."

The son of Hermes turned in his sleep, fists clenching and unclenching around his pillow. The light of the rising sun cast a warm orange glow over his face and Percy saw his mouth moving. "N'vuh," he muttered and repeated. His body twitched restlessly. "No…"

Now alarmed, Percy shook him harder. "Luke. Luke, wake up."

His eyes opened, glowing gold from the tendrils of sunlight that filled the cabin. Then he sat up and his eyes were back to their normal blue. "Good morning," he rasped. Luke cleared his throat. "Well, tonight sucked," he concluded. "Ready for another day at camp?"

Percy gave a timid smile. "Guess so."


	16. The Son of Poseidon

For some reason the strange dreams with Percy had stopped. Luke didn't know what to think about it, but he figured they just weren't necessary anymore now that Percy was safe and they were on good terms again. Still, sometimes he missed them, because since those dreams went away his nights have become a bit… restless. Nowadays Luke's dreams are darker. Literally. Sometimes he's just standing there in the midst of, well, nothing. Combined with the sound of growling monsters and a low, rasping voice, beckoning him to come closer… it gets a bit creepy.

Luke hadn't told anybody about his dreams. It's not like he was actively keeping it secret that he didn't sleep well, but it just didn't come up in any conversations. Besides, Luke spent most of his days with Percy, training the young son of Poseidon how to handle a sword, fly a pegasus, avoid getting burned with lava, you know, the usual demigod stuff.

So far Percy seemed to really like it at camp, especially Capture the Flag. It was during one of them that something happened that Luke had been dreading since the day Percy stepped foot into Camp Half-Blood.

"Luke, behind you!" Percy warned him.

Luke turned around just in time to block Beckendorf's sword with his own. "Thanks Perce!" he yelled back before focusing on the fight.

They, along with some Athena kids, had almost reached the flag of the red team when suddenly the whole Hephaestus cabin ambushed them. A high-pitched shriek told him that yet another demigod from their side had activated some kind of booby-trap.

A bright flash blinded him for a second. Blinking, he tried to defend himself from Beckendorf, but it was no use. The trap hadn’t affected the son of Hephaestus, most likely because they were wearing some kind of protection. Luke got caught by surprise when Beckendorf's fist collided hard with his chin.

He groaned and backed up a step, only to trip in yet another trap. A net came falling down from the tree above. Luke almost managed to avoid it, but his legs got stuck. Cursing, he bent down to free them.

While doing so he quickly scanned the battlefield. From the blue team, only Percy and Annabeth were still standing. They were fighting back to back, just out of reach of the flag. The red team, however, still counted five demigods, two of which were Luke's age.

Luke would've thought the situation to be hopeless, but then he noticed something.

They were fighting ankle-deep in water from the creek.

Somehow the five from the other team were struggling to remain standing, while Annabeth and Percy seemed unhindered by it. Percy was fighting better than ever, Luke realized. It didn't take long before he made the connection, once he did he laughed. The red team had chosen the wrong spot for their flag. But to be fair, they hadn't known that the blue team had a son of Poseidon.

Luke watched with pride as Percy slammed the hilt of his long sword against the helmet of one of the demigods with less experience. Then he shook out of it and cut the net holding him to the ground. Jumping up he joined Annabeth and Percy in the fight. Another one down, Luke cheered inside his head as he gracefully sidestepped a spear, moving (unlike the three remaining demigods) just as easy in the water as he would have on land.

"Percy, grab the flag! Annie and I will keep them busy."

"Okay!" Percy replied before he darted off, sprinting the last few steps towards the flag.

 

****

Later, at the campfire, everyone was still talking about how Percy and Annabeth, two of the youngest demigods, had played a big role in capturing the flag. Even the Hephaestus kids were amazed by their skills, rather than angry at being defeated. Everyone who hadn't been present to see it wanted to hear the story. But there was a downside to it.

"But how were you able to move that quickly?"

"And why weren't you chased by the Hephaestus guys?"

"Five of them against the two of you? There has to be more to the story."

 There was no way they could answer the questions without admitting that Percy was a son of Poseidon.

Percy looked at Luke for help so he stepped in. "It must be something he inherited from his father," he said. "Or maybe it was just luck."

But that only opened another discussion. "Who could his father be? God of fighting?"

"Or speed! Maybe he's Luke's brother!"

"But he doesn't look like one…"

Then suddenly the guessing stopped as they all stared at Percy. Or, more specifically, they stared at something floating above Percy's head.

Luke, too, stared at the floating trident. However, he wasn't shocked. Nor was Percy. They looked at each other, both dreading what would follow. They would be separated. Percy would be alone in cabin three.

The silence was broken when someone muttered, "Sweet, we've got a son of Poseidon."

That seemed to shake the others out of their daze. They started talking amongst themselves, wondering what it meant.

"Should we kneel? His dad's one of the big three!"

"You've got to be kidding me, he's only nine! No way am I kneeling."

"The big three."

"OMGS, the big three!"

"Luke," Percy said. "Is this the usual reaction to someone getting claimed?"

Luke shook his head no. "It's a bit different because of who your father is. You're the first child of the big three since, well, let's not talk about Thalia now."

Amidst all the chaos Chiron suddenly appeared before them. "Percy, Luke, perhaps you could move Percy's things to cabin three together while I deal with the questions?"

They both nodded, eager to get out of there.

 

Once inside Hermes cabin they sat down on Percy's bed.

“Do you actually _have_ something to pack?" Luke asked him.

Percy shrugged. "Not really. Some clothes, toothbrush and stuff like that I guess."

Luke nodded. "Right."

The younger demigod sighed. "I'm going to miss this cabin. I know I have only been here for a few weeks, but still."

Luke nodded again.

"I knew it was coming. Poseidon, my dad, had warned me already."

"He did?" Luke questioned curiously.

"Yeah, when he came to visit me on my first day here, remember?" Percy grimaced at the thought of his first day. Luckily Luke helped him that night and since then he had started to like camp. It had become a home to him. His only home now.

"Oh, that's right. He took you on a walk. What else did he say?"

"Well, he told me he was sorry about mom." Percy bit his lip. "And that if it had been up to him, he would've stayed with her."

"Do you believe him?" Luke couldn't help but ask. His own father had said similar things, but at the time Luke had called him a liar.

Percy shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe? It's just…" He hesitated, tilting his head. "I don't know him that well. I mean, sure, I know he's my dad and god of the sea and everything, but…"

"But you don't know him." Luke finished for him, looking Percy dead in the eye. "He tells you that he really loved your mother and that he loves you as well, but there's no prove. There is no way to know if what he says is the truth. And even if it is, does it make up for all those years he wasn't there? All the missed times where he should've been there to be a father to you, can they really be forgiven just because he claims to be sorry?"

Percy looked at him with wide eyes and Luke realized that he wasn't helping.

"I'm sorry," Luke apologized. "I didn't mean to rant."

Percy shook his head. "No, don't be. You're right. That's exactly what I have been asking myself."

"It is?" Luke raised an eyebrow. "And have you gotten your answers?"

Percy took a moment to ponder that. "I think… yes."

"And?" Luke urged on when Percy didn't continue. "Was it something he said? Or maybe he did something to prove it?"

"A bit of both, really," Percy told him. "When we talked, he also asked me something."

Luke refrained from asking Percy to hurry up. He felt a desperate need to know how Percy had decided whether he should thrust his father or not.

"He was about to do something for me, but fortunately he asked me first. Posei- _Dad_ , was about to start a war because Zeus send a monster that… you know, chased after us and…" Percy's breath stocked at the memory of his mother's death. Luke pulled him close and rubbed his back to comfort him.

Percy whispered thanks before he continued. "So he wanted to start a war, but when he told me I said I didn't want him to do it. I don't want a war, Luke."

"Of course you don't," Luke soothed, though he felt himself grow worried. A war? "I'm sure he didn't really mean it. He was just mad because of the monster."

"No," Percy stated. "He did mean it. My dad was really going to start a war, but he won't. Because I asked him not to."

"He…" Luke was at a loss of words. "He didn't do it, because you asked. And he really listened?"

"I think so. There is no war right now, right?" Percy asked afraid.

"No there's not," Luke reassured him. "I'm just shocked, amazed, that he changed his plans for you."

Percy smiled. "Yeah, he did."

"He must really care a lot about you then," Luke whispered, deep in thoughts. "He went out of his way to do something for you."

"Yeah, he did."

For a moment they sat together in silence till Percy chuckled dryly. "You can finally sleep on your own bed again."

It took Luke a moment to understand. "Oh, that's right. I almost forgot that I used to have a bed here," then he paused, wondering if he should say what he wanted to say. "But it doesn't matter. It's not like I'm going to sleep in it once you're in Poseidon's cabin."

"What do you mean?" Percy asked in confusion.

"I won't be sleeping here at all. I'm staying with you, Perce. Surely your father won't mind it that much if I kept you company." Luke grinned at him.

Percy's face brightened. "Really? You're coming with me?"

Luke laughed as Percy hugged him. "Always."

 

A few minutes later they entered cabin three. They both took the top bunk of a bed and threw their stuff on the lower one. They prepared for bed (they had their own shower!) and then lay down on their respective beds.

"Percy, you still awake?" Luke asked after a few moments.

"Yes. I've got too many questions to go to sleep." Percy responded as he sat up.

Luke turned the lights on. "Me too. So, I assume that since I'm still alive your father is okay with me staying here, but what about the camp activities? Officially I'm still part of cabin eleven so my activities will still be with them. I'm sure Chiron would agree with you joining us for them."

"Sounds good." Percy said. "What about tables? Will you sit with me too?"

"If you want me to, yes."

Percy nodded. "I don't want to be alone."

"And you won't be," Luke assured. "But there's something else I want to talk to you about."

"Okay, what is it?" Percy asked tentatively.

"The others… I'm not sure how they will react to you now that they know who your father is. It may sound strange, but maybe some of them won't be nice to you anymore."

"But, why? I'm still me. Just Percy"

"It's hard to explain. Sometimes demigods just don't like each other because their parents are rivals. It's a bit stupid, but it's kind off like prejudice." Luke tried hard to explain it in an easy way.

"So, they won't like me anymore?" Percy frowned.

"Not all of them," Luke hastily corrected. "Some of them maybe, but they'll get over it eventually."

"Which gods don't like my dad?" Percy wanted to know.

Luke hesitated. "Well, there is some sibling rivalry with Zeus and Hades, but they don't have any children here at camp. Athena might still hold a grudge against him."

"Athena? Isn't that Annie's mom?" Percy asked with worry. "Will Annabeth hate me now? Because of my dad?"

"Absolutely not! You've been friends with her for three weeks now, she knows you well enough by now to be able to see past who your father is. She won't hate you," Luke reassured him, all the while praying that what he'd just told Percy was true. The son of Poseidon would be devastated if one of his closest friends left him, and not to mention Silena who shipped them from day one. No, Percabeth must prevail, even if they just remained friends.

"Try to get some sleep, Perce. We'll have to wait and see what tomorrow brings us." Luke crept under his covers again.

 

****

The first Luke noticed was that it wasn't dark. Well, maybe it was, but a different kind of dark. The at-the-bottom-of-the-sea kind of darkness, because that was exactly where he was. Yet somehow he managed to see the man in front of him just fine. "Lord Poseidon," he said as he bowed. Better be respectful to the god whose cabin he's sleeping in without permission.

"Rise."

Luke did, keeping an untrustworthy eye on the god. He may have convinced Percy, but Luke still had some doubts. "What is it you want to tell me?"

"First of all," the Lord of the Seas began, "I want to say…  thank you. For helping Percy."

The son of Hermes stood frozen. He barely refrained from gaping at the god. "Er, you're welcome," he eventually said, mind still reeling from the fact that a god had just said thank you. Again! Luke had expected the god to be angry at him because he failed to keep Percy's mother alive while running from the Chimera.

"So are you," Poseidon stated. "You're welcome to stay in my cabin for as long as you deem it needed. I must say I'm relieved Percy won't be the only one sleeping in there. He's just a boy, after all."

Luke nodded numbly. "Yeah, he is."

Feeling awkward he looked around. Luke realized that he wasn't just standing on a random spot of ocean, but at the gates of Poseidon's palace. From where he stood in the dark he couldn't see much, but the sheer size of the gates showed that the palace must be big, too. Luke figured that he must be one of the few mortals to ever see this place, though it was just in a dream. And Percy's father had let him come here just to thank him for keeping Percy safe. The demigod started to believe that Poseidon truly cared for Percy. Luke remembered the god secretly visiting his sleeping son at Montauk. Maybe, just maybe, the god of the sea was one of the few gods who gave a damn about their demigod children.

"I'm sorry about Sally," Luke blurted out. "I couldn't save her."

A bitter smile spread across the god's face as he lay a hand on Luke's shoulder. "I blame only my younger brother for her death. Fortunately my older brother made sure she'll have a good afterlife."

Luke nodded convinced. "She died a heroic death."

"Sally gave her life for Percy, yes." Poseidon nodded, lost in thought before he focused on Luke again. Removing his hand he said, "I trust you would do the same for him if it came down to it."

"My lord?" Luke asked in confusion. He didn't know if that was meant to be warning, threat or just a comment.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not ordering you to do anything. As I'm sure you've heard from Percy, I refrained from declaring war for him. If you were in my position, would you have done the same?" No trace of a smile was left on his face as Poseidon regarded Luke with a deadly serious look, his familiar sea-green eyes scanning the demigod. "You don't have to answer me, but I ask you to think about it."

"I-I… uh, okay," Luke stammered. "I will."

The smile came back full force. "I know you will, Luke Castellan," Poseidon said. "Until next time."


	17. A Foreboding Night

It was dark again. This time, however, he wasn't underwater. It was the bad kind of dark, the nightmare dark. Luke knew at once what he would see if he turned around. Even so, he turned and was met with the sight of a bottomless pit. A croaking voice beckoned him to come closer. Luke tried to refuse, he really did, but his feet moved nonetheless. He had no control over his body. Someone else was making this decision for him.

Said someone forced him to take a look over the edge of the hellish pit, where monsters were rotting and recovering again. Luke suppressed the urge to clamp his eyes shut, or throw up. A feeling of extreme despair overtook him. The deafening wails, screeches and roars reached his ears. It was so loud he would've had a headache if it weren't just a dream.

The same voice as before tried to speak to him but Luke couldn't make out the words. An invisible shield or filter made sure of that. Yet, he could hear it more clearly than last night. Maybe the shield was wavering. Or the voice was getting stronger.

Either way, Luke dreaded the day when the shield was completely gone and there would be nothing to stop the voice from… From what exactly? One side of Luke couldn't wait to find out what it was that he needed to hear so badly that he was summoned to this dream every night. The other side was convinced that, when the time came, he would be in a lot of trouble.

Standing just inches away from the pit, Luke felt himself wake up at last. He hated this nightmare. And tomorrow he'll have one exactly the same, save the voice. The voice would be closer to reaching him.

* * *

_Meanwhile on Olympus_

 

"…Build a few more cabins… Not for _every_ god, but the, eh, a bit _less_ minor ones… not on the Council… complains… demigods… hello… attention?" Zeus snapped out of his thoughts as he heard a question. "Hmm… no," he automatically replied, his hands thoughtlessly caressed the armrests of his throne. For some reason Hermes kept asking to speak to him. In fact, now that Zeus thought about it, he'd been seeing a lot of the god the last few weeks.

His son sighed. "I asked if you were listening. This is really serious, and isn't it time for a change anyway?"

The Lord of the Skies silently disagreed. It was never time for a change, but unfortunately things sometimes changed without his consent. "What were you talking about again?"

"First of all my cabin is way too cramped. And no, it's not because I'm having too much affairs. At least half of the demigods staying in my cabin aren't mine."

Zeus frowned. He didn't like where this conversation was headed. "So? What are you suggesting?"

"More cabins and more claims," Hermes repeated, barely withholding an eye-roll.

Zeus's frown deepened. "Cabins for… the minor gods?"

Hermes nodded convinced.

The other god chuckled. Then cackled. "Cabins for the minor gods!" Zeus laughed, wiping at his eyes. "Preposterous! They're not even on the Council!"

The Messenger God, on the other hand, looked dead serious. "Yeah, that's the second request. Minor gods on the Council. Or at least give them a vote, like the mortals already have."

That sobered him up quickly. "Come now, Hermes, you're kidding, right? How many gods have you spoken too that agreed with you?"

He tapped his chin, pretending to be counting. "All the Olympian gods who I've told about the plan are willing to support it. And of course several minor gods. I haven't asked _everyone_ yet, so…" Hermes left it hanging there. It was true, kind off. Fortunately Zeus didn't need an exact number. If he only spoke to three Olympians and they all agreed…

Zeus nearly choked. "All of them? And you did all this without telling me?"

"As a fact, I did tell you. More than once. Only, you spaced out on me like you did just a minute ago."

"It doesn't matter, nothing will happen unless I grant you the permission to do so," Zeus fumed. "Even with the council's consent. I forbid you."

"Then give me the permission I need. I'll tell everyone it was your idea and everyone will be grateful," Hermes reasoned. As the god of commercials, he knew how to sell an idea. "The cabins will be a hit, I assure you. And the minor gods will be so thankful to have a vote that they won't betray us."

Zeus's head shot up, his eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, 'betray us?'"

"You know exactly what I meant. _He_ 's going to rise again, and when he does some minor gods will join him. We've still got time to make sure that won't happen. That _when_ he rises, not if, he'll be all alone while we stand united. But for us to do so, we'll have to right some wrongs first. Starting with the rights of minor gods," Hermes concluded.

Zeus suppressed the urge to shout his denial over _His_ return and gave a weary sigh instead.

For the first time that evening Zeus actually considered what the other god was telling him. While to be honest he strongly disliked the notion of giving the minor gods more power, Zeus knew that it was only a matter of time before he would be forced to do so. Maybe he should do it now, when he could benefit from it.

Still, this wasn't a something that he wanted to rush into. "I'll take it into consideration."

 

* * *

 

"Morpheus! Good news!" Hermes exclaimed when he next saw the god of dreams. Said god stepped out of the elevator that had just taken him home and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What is it?"

"I'm finally making some real progress with Zeus," Hermes said with a feeling of accomplishment.

"You are?" Morpheus sounded surprised, perhaps more than he should've been. "Has he agreed already?"

"Well, no." His mood dampened slightly. "But he has agreed to think about it. Given some time he'll realize what a great opportunity it is."

Morpheus scowled. "So, you're telling me to wait."

Hermes frowned. "Did something happen? You're even grumpier than usual. And no, I am not telling you to wait."

"Then why are you talking to me?" Morpheus suddenly lashed out.

"I just wanted you to know that I _am_ keeping my word. In a matter of time you'll have your own cabin and a vote on the council." Hermes said timidly, though eyeing the god suspiciously. Something was off about him.

"Is this your way of asking me to start helping you again?" Morpheus accused. "Because I'll let you know I've done quite enough of that already. I'm done."

"I didn't ask you to send Luke the dreams again, I-"

But an irate Morpheus cut him off, "You do want me to do that, though, don't you?"

Hermes pursed his lips. "Yes. I do. But I'm not asking you to."

"Great, because I'm not going to. You should be grateful Luke is capable of _sleeping_ in the first place. What's going on inside his dreams isn't that important, is it? Now that he and Percy can talk in real life the dreams won't be necessary. So mind your own business and stay away from Luke's dreams."

Morpheus walked away, but not before rudely brushing against Hermes's shoulder.

 

**Line Break**

 

The morning started out bad. Percy felt eyes on him as he walked up to Poseidon's table with Luke at his side. Everyone seemed to wait with bated breath for something. It was only when Luke sat down and everyone started whispering that Percy realized that no one knew about the new sleeping and seating arrangements yet. They were probably wondering why Luke hasn't been blown to bits yet. But as they were hesitant to approach the newly claimed son of Poseidon, they left them be.

Breakfast was a silent affair.

Neither occupant of the table seemed at ease talking with all the staring going on, so they settled on a relatively comfortable silence. Slowly everyone around them started getting up and leaving one by one as they'd finished eating.

"I saw your dad last night," Luke casually said. "He gave me permission, so all that's left to do is tell Chiron."

"You saw him? In your dream, you mean?" Percy asked.

Luke nodded. "Yeah, I was underwater. It was so deep I couldn't see a thing."

Percy chuckled. "Sounds cool."

"Of course it would sound cool to _you_ ," Luke laughed.

Percy joined in. They stood up and were about to leave when Annabeth walked up to them.

"Hey, Percy," she started, biting her lip contemplatively. She glanced back over her shoulder, as if wondering if it was too late to turn back now. Steeling herself, Annabeth stepped closer and pushed something small into Percy's hand.

"Happy birthday," she whispered. Shooting Percy a half-smile she rushed away, calling a hasty "see you later" over her shoulder, leaving a stunned Percy in her wake.

Luke put a consoling hand on the boy's shoulder as he continued to gape after her. "I've known her for years now and believe me, she'll always manage to surprise you."

Percy blinked. "I… She…" he tried to say before shaking his head. "Girls are strange."

Luke nodded. "That they are, but I suppose this means she doesn't hate you. Hey, Perce?" He grinned when Percy turned to face him. "Why didn't you tell me it was your birthday?"

"Honestly, I totally forgot about it," Percy sheepishly admitted. "I'm surprised Annabeth remembered, actually. I think I mentioned it about a week ago?"

"Well, because you failed to inform _me_." Luke tried to look stern but was in fact amused. "I haven't gotten you anything yet, but I'll make it up to you later. First, however… Open it!"

"Open what?" Percy asked in confusion.

"Annie's gift." Luke rolled his eyes. "The small box you're holding right now? The one Annabeth gave you?"

"Oh, right!" Percy's eyes lit up. He carefully untied the ribbon on top and opened it.


	18. Birthday Incident

Percy frowned.

"What is it?" Luke asked.

"There's a note."

"What does it say?"

 **"** I'm still reading." Percy squinted his eyes some more. _"You're not alone."_

He smiled. "Thanks Annie."

"You know she can't hear you?" Luke teased with a knowing smile.

"Oh shut up," Percy retorted, a small blush forming on his cheeks. He put the box down on the table and put the note away with careful fingers. Turning back to his present, the first thing he noticed was that it was blue. Percy picked it up and turned it over. He gave a small gasp.

"What is it?" Luke asked again.

Percy didn't answer immediately. He gaped at the small picture frame. Or more specifically, at the picture within. His eyes filled with tears as he uttered, "It's Mum. It's a picture of her." Percy turned to Luke with a watery smile. "I can finally see her again."

Luke smiled back. "That's great, Perce. Can I see it?"

With a nod Percy held up the frame for him to see. The picture was taken at Montauk, or so Luke assumed. Sally Jackson was sitting serenely on the beach, her bare feet resting in the water, with a peaceful smile on her face. She wasn't directly looking at the camera, but her face was clearly visible. She looked a bit younger than she'd been when Luke met her, though just as friendly as ever. Luke could easily imagine that Sally was watching Percy play in the water while someone else took the picture unnoticed.

Percy sniffed. "She looks beautiful, doesn't she?"

Luke nodded silently.

"I can't believe Annabeth managed to get this. My mum had never been a fan of the Internet; she used to say that she didn't want bad people to find us. Now I know that she wasn't hiding from bad people, but hiding _me_ from monsters."

"She was a very smart woman," Luke replied. "But I doubt Annabeth used the Internet."

Percy agreed.

"Let's go put her on your bedside table. And since it's your birthday, you get to choose what you want to do afterwards," Luke told Percy with a gentle smile. "It can be anything from camp activities to baking a cake."

"Anything?" Percy asked mysteriously. 

* * *

Half an hour later Luke was starting to regret his words. He was sitting cross-legged on the beach while Percy stood in the water with closed eyes and clenched fists. When at first Percy had suggested trying his powers out, Luke had been as enthusiastic as the son of Poseidon. Thirty minutes in, however, Luke concluded this wasn't going to work any time soon. Especially with two ADHD demigods who couldn't stop talking for more than a minute.

"Luke, I think the waves are getting a bigger!" Percy exclaimed.

Luke studied the water. Sure enough, the waves _were_ getting bigger, but… "It's just the wind that's getting stronger."

Percy's shoulders sagged in disappointment. "This is a waste of time! I'm never going to learn how to control water!" he complained noisily.

"Just keep trying, one day it will work."

Percy scowled heavily as he glared at the water. "Just move already, will you!"

Luke sighed and got up from where he had been sitting. He stepped into the water next to Percy, putting a calming hand on his shoulder. "Unless you are _really_ angry, screaming at the water won't help. Let's try it another way."

"You're right," Percy said dejected. "This isn't going to work."

" _This_ isn't going to work, but something else will," Luke tried to cheer him up. "Maybe we should start with something easier."

"Like swimming?" Percy asked sarcastically.

A huge wave appeared from nowhere, engulfing them both and pulling them underwater. The son of Hermes briefly opened his eyes but all he could see were his own air bubbles. When he resurfaced again, Luke came to the discovery that he couldn't stand in the sand anymore. He'd been swept out to sea by at least fifty feet. Feeling relieved that he had at least had the foresight to already take his shirt of the minute Percy stepped into the water, Luke dove back underwater in search of said demigod.

Not out of worry, of course. The son of Poseidon would be just fine on his own underwater. Which was proved when Luke saw him sitting peacefully on the sea bottom, striking up a conversation with an orange-colored fish.

Luke went up for air before diving down again, this time determined to get as close to Percy as possible before he ran out of breath. Which, as it turned out, was just a few feet away from Percy.

The boy waved at Luke. "Come closer, I want to introduce you to Walter!" Within a fraction of a second Percy was at his side, pulling Luke after him as he swam back to the fish.

Luke shook his head, pointing upwards. But Percy didn't see it, as he was talking to the fish named Walter again. "Meet my friend Luke. No, of course he can't understand you. He's not like me… Oh, wait. Luke!"

By then Luke had shaken himself loose of Percy's grasp and was frantically swimming for the surface. Percy followed, catching up to him in no time. "Don't you drown on me!" he ordered, forming an air bubble around Luke's head.

The demigod gasped for air.

When it looked like he'd recovered again, Percy breathed out a sigh of relief. "Thank the gods you're alright. I'm so sorry I didn't realize sooner! I'd completely forgotten that you needed to breathe…"

But Luke shook his head. "Don't apologize. You know what? It was worth it."

"What?"

"Percy, look at what you did," Luke deadpanned. "I'm breathing. While underwater."

"That…" Percy looked amazed. "That's right! I did it! Luke, _we_ did it!"

* * *

After having talked to Walter the fish some more, they'd gotten hungry and decided to get some food for a picnic. While on their way to the woods, they came across Annabeth.

"Did you like the gift?" She asked.

Percy smiled widely at her. "Thank you so much! It's the only picture I have of her, I don't know how I'm ever going to repay you for this."

"Don't worry about it." Annabeth shrugged.

"Hey, if you've got time, why don't you join us?" Luke suggested. "We were just about to go for a picnic in the forest."

Annabeth took a moment to think before shrugging. "Sure, why not?"

"Great!" Percy smiled.

"But first, let me grab a dagger." She took of without waiting for a reply.

"Guess we'll just wait here," Luke chuckled, shaking his head fondly.

Percy looked up at him. "Will I need a weapon too?"

Luke shook his head. "I don't think so. You're with us, and most monsters that room there aren't _that_ hard to kill. Besides, we'll have to go through the whole process of choosing a sword again."

"It's not my fault! They just don't feel right in my hands…" Percy said mock-hurt.

"That's because your hands are so small. You'll get used to them eventually," Luke replied.

Annabeth came rushing back, this time holding her dagger. "Okay, ready to go?"

 

They found a nice spot by the creek, not far from Zeus' Fist, in the shadow of a juniper tree.

"So you met each other while running away from home?" Percy asked to clarify. "Along with Grover and Thalia?"

"Yeah, have you met Grover already?" Annabeth asked. "I heard he was back at camp but I haven't seen him yet."

"Back? Back from where?" Percy asked.

"He's been trying to find another demigod. His first assignment was us, and that didn't go too well," Annabeth explained. "But I'm sure he can do it, he's a good satyr. And he's got a good nose."

"But, why would he need to try again? He got you guys to camp safely, right?"

Annabeth tentatively looked at Luke, knowing this was a sensitive topic for him too. To her surprise, he was the one to start telling the story.

"He did what he could, but we were chased by too many monsters. See, Thalia was a child of the big three. Of Zeus," Luke told gravely. His head was bowed down, his eyes unfocused. "Naturally, Hades felt betrayed. Zeus broke the oath, so Hades felt it was only fair to kill Thalia. I used to wonder why Poseidon didn't help him, but now I know it was because of you."

"Hold up," Percy interrupted, raising his hand. "What oath are you talking about?"

"You don't know?" Annabeth scolded. "After the second world war, Zeus, Poseidon and Hades swore upon the river Styx not to have demigod children again, because they wanted to avoid another world war."

"There's another reason. One that's not so widely known," Luke admitted, sounding even more serious than before. "There's a prophecy. I don't know the exact words, but it's about a child of the Big Three. For some reason, the gods don't want it to be fulfilled."

"Is it… The prophecy, could it be about me?" Percy asked fearfully. His hands nervously played with grass.

Luke shrugged. "Don't think too much on it, prophecies can be very misleading. It could just as well be another hundred years before the Child of the Prophecy is even born."

"I can't just _not_ think about it," Percy protested. "Is there someone who can tell me more about it?"

"No doubt Chiron knows something, but he won't tell you until he thinks you're old enough." Luke rolled his eyes, clearly displaying his thoughts about it. "But I was telling you about Thalia."

"Oh right, sorry," Percy apologized.

"As I said, we were chased by Hades's monsters. We were almost at camp when they caught up to us. Thalia told us to go while she kept them busy…" Luke broke off, so Annabeth continued for him. "We made it through the barrier, but Thalia didn't. Just before she died, Zeus turned her body into a pine tree. You may have noticed her standing on Half-Blood Hill."

"I… Yes, I think I've seen her," Percy recalled. "She sounds like a true hero. I'm so sorry."

"So am I," Luke said. "Thalia didn't deserve to die like that. Zeus should've tried harder to help _save_ her instead of preserving her body by making her a tree."

"I'm sure he meant well," Percy said, although sounding a bit hesitant. "At least she'll be remembered and honored."

Annabeth piped in, "She sacrificed herself for us. Even now in her death, she continues to keep us safe from monsters."

The son of Hermes stayed silent, not letting know if he agreed or disagreed with them.

"But I thought there _are_ monsters here. In the forest, I mean. Isn't this area also protected?" Percy asked Annabeth, sensing that the conversation about Thalia was over.

"We've allowed _some_ monsters to live here, but not the really dangerous ones. They can't enter, unless summoned by someone inside camp," the daughter of Athena explained.

"Has that ever happened?" Percy asked curiously.

"Sure, for a prank."

"You think that's funny?"

"Never said that, but it happens. Mainly the Hermes kids. Or maybe Ares, they like a challenge in the form of a scary, hairy monster. But few demigods die from it, so don't worry."

" _Few_ demigods?" Percy squeaked.

Annabeth burst out laughing. "I'm just kidding. Gods, you're such a Seaweed Brain."

"Hey!" Percy complained. "If I'm a Seaweed Brain, you're a… eh, you're a…"

"That's exactly what I meant! You can't even think of a good comeback," Annabeth teased.

"It's hard to think of an insult for you. Being wise isn't a bad thing, so- wait, did you hear that?" Percy straightened, suddenly on high alert. He scanned the trees.

"No, what was it?" Annabeth asked skeptically, thinking he was just trying to fool her.

"A growl of sorts." Percy hesitated. "I'm not sure, but it was creeping me out."

Then another deep growl sounded, but this time Annabeth and Luke heard it too.

"Annabeth, get your dagger," Luke commanded, at the same time unsheathing his sword.

A howl pierced through the forest and not a second later two massive dogs came rushing towards them. Their flaming red eyes stood out against their pitch-black fur. One of them went for Luke, while the other tried to get Percy. Tried and failed, because Annabeth jumped between them, slamming her blade against the beast's neck. The hound whined in pain, but kept fighting with his injury.

Percy stood helpless without a weapon. Yet, when he saw a third one creep up behind Annabeth, he flung himself at it. The instant Percy made impact he felt sharp claws slice through the skin of his chest. He got slammed to the ground, the weight of the monster holding him down. Through his blurry vision, he caught a glimpse of the hound's cold, golden eyes. Then the weight was gone.

* * *

 Luke was sitting next to Percy's bed. Well, his hospital bed. He already knew that Percy would make it, he was just unconscious. On his bedside table stood a glass of nectar, ready to be drunk when he finally woke up. Although it had only been two hours since the hellhounds attacked, Luke was getting impatient. Annabeth and he had already been cleaned up and were cleared to leave the infirmary. However, Luke opted to stay behind and wait for Percy to wake up.

He had several reasons. The main one being concern, of course. But there was also guilt. Percy had asked him whether he should have a sword with him on the picnic, and Luke had been the one to convince him that he wouldn't need one.

Also, Luke had the impression that _he_ was the reason for the attack. When he stabbed the third hellhound, the one who hurt Percy, he'd heard a familiar voice.

" _You should've listened."_  

At first Luke had tried to deny that it was, in fact, the same voice as the one in his dreams. If that were the case, his dreams were a lot more than just dreams. It would mean that the person was real. And, quite possibly, someone inside of camp. How else could the hellhounds have entered?

That was another reason why he didn't want to leave the infirmary yet. The demigod who harmed Percy was still out there.

Luke wanted to find him, but in the meantime he had to make sure Percy was still safe.

Someone knocked on the door and it opened to reveal Chiron. He glanced at Percy first, but his brown eyes eventually found Luke.

"Come in," Luke invited him, though it wasn't really necessary.

"Has he woken up already?" Chiron asked, coming to stand on the other side of Percy's bed.

Luke shook his head no.

"Hmm, he'll probably be out for a few more hours. Poor lad, I heard it is his birthday."

Luke nodded this time. "Yeah, he's ten now."

"Have you celebrated?" Chiron asked.

"Nothing big. I only found out this morning so I hadn't planned anything for him. We went on a picnic in the forest, though. You know what happened next."

"The attack, yes. Speaking of which, could you tell me some more about it? I have of course heard Annabeth's version, but maybe you've noticed something she didn't?" Luke wondered if Chiron actually wanted to ask: 'Did you have anything to do with it?' or: 'Do you know who did it?'

"No, I don't think she's missed anything," Luke answered him. "Do you think someone planned this attack?" He was careful to keep his voice neutral. He didn't look at Chiron, instead focusing on Percy's chest that had been bleeding before, but was now slowly rising up and down.

"I wouldn't go so far as to accuse someone of deliberately harming a fellow camper, but it could very likely have been a prank gone wrong," Chiron said. "Unless you know who the culprit was?"

Luke shook his head, meeting the centaur's eyes this time.

"Very well." Chiron straightened. He made to leave the room again, but stopped halfway. Turning back, he questioned, "Since you only found out about his birthday today, does that mean you still need to find him a present?"

Luke nodded confused. "Yes, I haven't gotten the time to…"

"You won't have to. I know just the right gift." Chiron smiled, reaching for breast pocket. "I got this a long time ago from his father. I trust you will give it to Percy once he's ready." With that said, he handed Luke a ballpoint pen.


	19. A Deal with the Devil

_'You should've listened,'_ they were chanting. Luke ignored them as he made his way down the stairs, having gotten used to the whispers already. The bottomless pit… has a bottom. And Luke had just reached it. He'd long passed the point where his feet had been under his control. Now they just kept moving him closer. His only relief was that The Voice had stopped screaming at him, although he'd discover that it was only because they'd have plenty of time to talk once they were face to face. Which was much worse.

The pit was just as hellish on the inside as it had looked like on the outside. Partly reformed monsters, Luke learned, looked even uglier than alive ones. That's in no way a small feat. Some monsters, the prettier ones of the bunch, have tried to eat him. No such luck however. The monsters just passed right through him. As did the flames and the rocks they threw at him. The son of Hermes didn't doubt for a second though that if The Voice had wanted to, he'd have felt all of it just as it came at him. For some reason, however, It wanted Luke undamaged.

For now.

The walk through the pit took far too long, but was way too short at the same time. His feet had stopped. This was his final destination. It was with dread that the demigod looked up. The dark figure of a man was sitting on a throne. The throne might once have been a sign of power and wealth, but now it was no more than an ordinary chair the color of dirty gold. The man, Luke realized, was just like the other monsters in the pit: unfinished, damaged and evil. His body was made from shadows. His face was still featureless, apart from his mouth and eyes. If Luke hadn't known exactly how dangerous this deity could be, he would've written him of as harmless. Unfortunately, he was anything but.

His blue eyes met the malicious gold ones. "Kronos," Luke greeted coldly, unfriendly.

The titan kept silent, opting instead to smirk and turn his head to something on the ground next to him. Luke followed his eyes and gasped. His friend Ethan Nakamura, son of Nemesis, lay on the ground unconscious. Luke refrained from running to his side and glared at Kronos. "What did you do to him?" Luke demanded to know.

"Nothing irreversible… Yet," he answered. "What's going to happen to him now, is up to you."

Luke clenched his fists. "What do you want?" he all but spat out.

Kronos only reveled in his animosity. "Your loyalty."

Luke scoffed. "You can't force someone into being loyal. What else?"

"I want you, to steal something for me. You are your father's son, after all." The titan shot him a fake smile.

Luke didn't have a good feeling about it, but he had to ask, "What is it you want me to steal?"

"You will get me the Master Bolt and the Helm of Darkness, or else your friend here dies. And when he dies, I'll have to find someone else to do my bidding," Kronos said.

"Zeus's Master Bolt?" Luke repeated. "Hades’s Helm of Darkness? They are two of the strongest gods, I can't just pickpocket them!"

"Honestly, it won't be that hard. And it's not like you really have a choice. You will succeed, because it's in your and everyone else's best interest that you do," Kronos threatened. “And don’t try to fool me into thinking you’re content with the way things are under the rule of the gods. You want change just as much as I do. If you help me I can bring that change.”

"Even if that’s true, how am I supposed to steal their symbols of power?" he exclaimed with disbelief.

Kronos bent over to pick something up from the floor that Luke hadn't noticed before. It was an old looking duffel bag, held together with some duct tape. The Lord of Time threw it to him with all the seriousness in the world. He reached out to catch it and looked inside. "There's nothing in here," Luke told Kronos, looking back up to him.

"Of course there's nothing in there, you have to put it there first," Kronos mockingly explained. "Once you've gotten hold of the items this magic bag will contain and shrink it."

Luke shook his head in disbelief. "There's still the matter of getting to them in the first place, and this bag _,_ this _magic_ bag isn't going to help me sneak into the Underworld and Olympus."

"You may not believe me now, but that's going to be the easy part." Kronos chuckled darkly. "Getting them to me is where it gets risky. See, you'll be invited to Mount Olympus this December for the Winter Solstice. Hades is going to be there, too, as he won't pass up on his only chance to visit Olympus this year. You'll be staying the night, plenty of opportunity to steal something."

Luke narrowed his eyes in distrust. "How do you know this?"

"Although I'm not a titan of _prophecy_ , my domain time comes pretty close to it," Kronos said, drawing the word 'prophecy' out a bit. It was a taunt, Luke understood. Kronos knew that there was a prophecy about a child of the big three. Most likely he knew the exact words, too, while Luke had no idea.

But Luke didn't take the bait. "How do I know you'll keep your word?"

"I can swear on the River Styx if you want," Kronos offered. "Any more silly questions?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. Why?" Luke asked. "Why would you go through all this if you could just as well let Ethan do it? You do have him under your control, right? You don't need _me_ to steal the items, yet you want me to, you are even willing to swear on the River Styx if you have to. And I want to know _why_." 

For a moment it looked like Kronos was smiling, but he quickly hid it again. "Nakamura is under my control, yes. I made him summon the hellhound that attacked the son of Poseidon. Why do I want you? Simple. I only have him here at my side today, because I couldn't get to you. I had to look for an alternative and your friend is much weaker. He was an easy prey for me, which makes him an easy prey for the _Olympians_ ," he spat the name with not a small amount of disdain, "to catch red handed. You, however, are much more skilled. Stronger. Why shouldn't I pick a powerful demigod to do the deed?" Kronos was stroking his ego and Luke knew it. He wouldn't fall for it, not like he once would have.

"What are you going to do with their symbols of power if I give them to you?" Luke asked, though he wouldn't let it come that far. He just needed some more time to think, so he was stalling.

Luke considered the deal. Kronos was right in saying that Luke didn't have a choice. He couldn't just leave Ethan with Kronos, nor could he risk him trying to control other campers to do the task. No, Luke decided that he would be the only victim.

"Change things for the better. Start a war," Kronos said with a 'well-duh' voice that contradicted with his usual image as the all-mighty Lord of the Titans.

"You're going to use their own weapons against them?" Luke said, pretending to be afraid. Somehow he had to warn the gods that Kronos was very much awake and plotting to kill them.

"I'm going to use _them_ against them," the titan gloated, all too willing to share his genius plan. "There's a reason why you're only stealing two of the three objects. Those idiotic sons of mine will be so busy fighting amongst each other."

This time Luke didn't have to pretend that hard to be frightened when he concluded, "They won't even notice you're back until it's too late."

"Precisely." Kronos grinned victoriously.

Luke shivered. The son of Hermes was in the perfect position to prevent it from ever happening, he just had to figure out how. The Master Bolt and the Helm of Darkness played a vital role in Kronos's plan. If Kronos were to get them, he just had to sit back and enjoy the show the Big Three were certain to deliver him. So it was up to Luke to make sure the weapons stayed far away from Kronos. He had to fail.

All of a sudden Kronos glared at him. "You don't want me to win, do you?"

Luke didn't dare lie with the titan staring him down like that. It would also be unwise to tell the truth, so he stayed silent instead.

"Well here's the thing, demigod. I will win, with or without your help. It will just be easier for all of us if you would _take my deal_. Who knows, maybe I'll let you pick some friends for me to spare. I might even agree to let the Sea Spawn live. That all depends on how well you can do your job," Kronos persuaded. “You know things are horrible the way they are now. Many demigods are blind to all the gods’ faults; I do not take you as one of them. I can bring the change you’ve always dreamed about. The world would be so much better off without the Olympians. You would be regarded a hero by all your friends at camp. Their savior.”

Luke kept silent again, this time because he didn’t exactly disagree with Kronos here. Things did need to change. But Kronos would make an even worse ruler.

Kronos frowned. "It seems like you're close to waking up. I expect an answer from you tomorrow. You do remember what will happen if you choose the wrong side?"

Before he could reply, however, an earsplitting scream sounded through the pit. "LUKE!" Recognizing it as Percy's voice, Luke quickly spun around, turning his back on the Titan Lord of Time. The dark, narrow path from where he'd come was gone, replaced by a shimmering window to another place entirely. The window was aimed so that he couldn't see anything that was going on in the room. Luke could only see a fireplace, casting a warm glow that made him feel at ease. Luke vaguely recalled having seen it before. He knew that it was important, in a way. He needed to remember. He was _so close_ to remembering. The homey feeling of the fireplace was misleading him, something bad happened in that room. He saw it happen, but it didn't feel like a real memory would. "No no no," he heard Percy chant hysterically. "You can't die, Luke. Not here, not now."

Dead. That's right, Luke remembered. He'd died. On Mount Olympus, lying on the ground in the Throne Room, in front of the Hearth, he'd died. He'd seen it all happen in a dream, some time ago. But something was different this time.

"I will kill you one way or another if you betray me, Luke Castellan," he heard Kronos say, moments before he felt something piercing through his back. He gasped for air, falling on his knees in pain. Luke looked down at his chest with horror and surprise. It was bleeding, but he still could make out the faint bronze glow of a sword.

"See this as your welcoming gift," Kronos hissed from behind him as his vision clouded over and he felt himself being sucked through the window…

* * *

 

Someone was shaking his shoulders, he noticed, trying to blink the black spots away. Percy and Annabeth? Why are they crying? Luke fought to keep his eyes open, but he felt so weak and tired. And his eyelids felt so heavy all of a sudden… He let his head fall to the floor, gravity turning it to face away from them. Luke tried to turn his head back to see their faces. The last thing he saw before he slipped away was a fireplace.

* * *

Percy was having a nightmare. Some tears had made their way down his cheeks. Why was he crying? Luke asked himself shocked. He sat up from the armchair he'd been crashing in and quickly went over to Percy's bed in the infirmary. "Ssh… Wake up, Percy. You're just dreaming." He gently rocked the younger demigod, wishing for not the first time that they still had their shared dreams. It would be so much easier to help Percy battle the nightmares.

But then again, he couldn't risk pulling Percy into his dreams with Kronos. Luke froze up as he remembered his own dream. 

"Luke?"

Percy's voice, filled with relief, pulled him back to what was happening. "I'm here, Perce."

"I… It was so real." Percy said once he was sitting upright, holding on to Luke's arm for comfort. "And you, you were dead. Or dying. I don't really remember that much anymore."

Luke bit his lip. Should he tell Percy? He looked very closely at the ten-year-old. Percy didn't deserve to be burdened with something as dangerous as this. Kronos approached _him_ , and Luke had to deal with it on his own. "Well, as you can see, I'm breathing. It was just a dream. Nothing more," Luke reassured him. "Think you can go back to sleep?" he asked as he glanced at the clock. It was three in the morning, but Luke knew that he himself wouldn't be able to sleep again that night. "Though the nectar may have given you a boost, you still need to rest."

"Yeah, I suppose. As long as you're still alive." Percy smiled at him, before looking at something behind Luke. "Hey, when did you get a new sword?"

Luke's hand reached for his left pocket. Still feeling a ballpoint pen sitting there, he turned around in confusion. In the same armchair as the one where not a minute ago he'd been sleeping, now lay a familiar sword. He carefully walked over and picked it up with slightly trembling hands. The sword looked to be around four feet, forged from two different kinds of metal. One he easily recognized as celestial bronze, and the other must have been something like steel. It wasn't hard to imagine for what purpose it was made. Based of the choice in metals it was designed to kill not only monsters and deities, but mortals too. Still, that wasn't the most disturbing about the blade: it was still coated with blood. 

"Someone gave it to me," Luke scowled, though his back was to Percy so he couldn't see his facial expression. "I'm not sure I want it, though."

"Why not?" Percy asked confused. "You lost your old one, right?”

Luke pushed his anger at Kronos down for a moment to actually consider the gift. It was a nice sword, not too heavy or short. It did feel like it was made just for him. Maybe it _was_ made for him, for Kronos to stab him in the back with it. So yeah, the sword didn't exactly hold good memories, but he could change that by returning the favor…

"You know what? You're right. I'm keeping it," Luke decided with a devilish grin.

"Does it already have a name?" Percy asked curiously, though he was starting to sound a bit tired.

Luke shook his head slowly. "I don't think so. But I know just the right name for it."

"You do?"

"Yes. Backbiter." Luke's eyes gleamed with resentment and determination.

"Sounds intimidating," Percy murmured.

Luke nodded, though he had a feeling that Percy's eyes were closed again. "It is. I'll show it to you when you're more awake."

Percy made a sound that vaguely resembled a laugh.

"Goodnight, Percy," Luke whispered. He stayed standing, just listening to Percy's breath. Only when he knew for sure that Percy was asleep did he leave the room to go to the bathroom. He had to clean his new sword before someone saw the blood, because that would be a hard thing to explain. 

While cleansing it of the blood, he accidentally gazed in the mirror. His reflection smugly smiled at him, a long scar running along his face. Luke frowned, touching his own face, but there was only smooth skin there. Looking back in the mirror, the scar was gone there too. He shrugged it off. It was late and he was just seeing things.

He made his way back to Percy's room and sat on his chair. He closed his eyes, put his head between his hands and started to think. Kronos would without a doubt visit him the next time he falls asleep, which was tomorrow night. He needed to have a plan ready by then. So far he had: 1. Take the deal, 2. Betray Kronos. But that plan ends with: 3. Kronos gets furious and controls other demigods, 4. Kronos wins. So it was back to the drawing table. If only there was a way to trick Kronos in keeping to his oath no matter what. Was the Styx even a strong enough oath? Zeus and Poseidon had already gotten off easily when they broke it. Maybe Kronos would, too. Which meant that no matter what Kronos promised to do if Luke gives him the symbols of power, he wouldn't really be bound to keep his word. Even if the oath was powerful enough, Luke wasn't planning to keep his part of the deal, so Kronos wouldn't have to keep his either.

Luke groaned. It seemed he had a lot of research that needed to be done and just one day to do it.

* * *

Percy was confused. Luke had been avoiding him all day and he didn't know why. As far as he knew he hadn't done something to anger him. Or maybe he just didn't remember. He'd had a nightmare that woke Luke up, but usually he didn't mind. He didn't seem to mind it yesterday either, though Percy could've been mistaken. He'd been half asleep the whole time so it was a bit foggy.

The son of Poseidon had tried searching for Luke to no avail. He'd still been with him when Percy woke up, but after breakfast he just disappeared. Luke didn't show up to lunch or any of the activities they had scheduled, except sword fighting. 

He'd been waiting at the sword range for Percy, claiming that he'd been there the whole time to try out his new sword. It had hurt Percy, knowing he was being lied to. The sword range had been one of the first places he'd searched because he'd vaguely recalled the Backbiter. One of the things he remembered from the night before was seeing a strange sword with three colors: silver/grey, bronze and red.

But when Luke showed the sword to him again, the red was gone. He explained it was made of two different kinds of metal, which made it special. Percy didn't know what to think about the sword, somehow it felt _wrong_ and he couldn't stop thinking about the red he'd seen…

The training had gone well, though Luke was intent to start over from the basics again to prevent Percy over-exerting himself after being hospitalized. So Percy hadn't exactly learned something new, but Luke seemed optimistic, even saying that if he continued progressing so fast, Luke had a surprise for him.

So sword fighting had definitely lifted Percy's mood, though Luke disappeared again after that. He didn't see the older demigod again until dinner. This time Percy knew better than to ask where he'd been. He didn't want Luke to lie to him again, and he was obviously intent on keeping it a secret for now.

That night Percy didn't have any nightmares.

* * *

"You're back. I trust you've decided to take the deal?" Kronos smirked at him when Luke came to a stop. He once more stood in front of the throne, but to his relief Ethan wasn't there this time. It was between Kronos and him now.

Luke looked back at him with no expressions showing on his face. "I have, on one condition."

The titan raised an eyebrow. "Well let's hear it then. Name your condition."

"I will bring you the Master Bolt and Helm of Darkness, but until I've done so you will leave every demigod alone. You won't harm or control them; you won't even contact them. And don’t order someone else to do it either. You will swear all this on the River Styx," Luke stated.

Kronos took a moment to consider. In that moment, Luke had to try very hard not to let show how anxious he was. He knew that there was no reason at all why Kronos would take the deal, he could just as easily say no and blow the whole thing off. If that happened, Luke’s plan had already failed.

"I agree to you condition, but I have a condition of my own," Kronos revealed.

Luke nodded confidently.

"Since you like oaths so much, you will swear upon the river Styx that you'll grab Zeus' Master Bolt and Hades' Helm of Darkness and put them in the bag. Once they're in the bag, you will hand it over to me. Without informing anyone about it, of course."

"You don't trust me?" Luke asked with a hint of sarcasm to cover up for his nerves.

"Do _you_ trust me?" Kronos chuckled darkly.

"Once you make that oath I might," the demigod answered smoothly. "I take the deal."


	20. Catastrophe and Genesis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Not entirely mine. Some of the conversation has been copied from TLO, written of course by Rick Riordan.

 

**Chapter 19**

_Summer turned into fall, fall turned into winter._

Percy was not an idiot. He could tell that something was very wrong with Luke. It all started the day after his birthday, when Luke began avoiding him. At first he'd thought that he'd done something wrong, but Percy soon realized Luke wasn't just avoiding _him_ , he was avoiding everyone. He spent so much time on his own, reading or just practicing on his own.

After having endured a week of this behavior, Percy decided to confront him. He'd been growing steadily more worried, as Luke seemed to be having even more nightmares than usual. Sometimes it would be impossible to wake him. Percy hated those nights… He always felt so helpless when Luke just kept trashing the sheets and whispering dark things. Luke used to confide in Percy, tell him what his dreams were about. That was their way of making up for the fact that their dreams weren’t adjoined anymore. But now, Percy could only guess at what was making Luke scream his head of in the middle of the night. The son of Poseidon really wanted to know the truth, because it couldn’t possibly be worse than the theories he had conceived in his head.

Of course Luke wrote it of as nothing to worry about. He told Percy that he still loved him, but that he really needed to be alone more. And that one day, he hoped to be able to explain everything to Percy.

The son of Poseidon had been hurt, but he'd eventually accepted it. Maybe they were just growing apart, that happens all the time, right? Maybe Luke didn't want to waste his time on the younger demigod any longer.

How tempting it may have been for Percy to resent Luke for it, he could see that Luke was trying to make up for his absence. Although he'd never admitted it, Percy knew for a fact that Luke had asked Annabeth to spend more time with him. And on those brief occasions that Luke _did_ spent time with Percy, he would try to act as if nothing had changed. As if they were still best friends. Brothers, even.

On the upside, sword-fighting lessons have become so much better once Percy got the hang of it. He's now able to _not_ humiliate himself when sparring even the strongest opponent. Percy had been so proud when Luke predicted that in a few years he might even become the best swordsman at Camp Half-Blood.

So yeah, life wasn’t that bad, but Percy still missed the son of Hermes.

Things between Luke and him didn't improve. Neither did Percy's theories. He imagined the worst things happening to Luke, or sometimes even happening because of Luke. Percy felt guilty for doubting his friend, but he really didn’t know what else to think. He had a feeling that Luke was sinking, and even the son of Poseidon couldn’t save him.

__________________________

Luke knew he was being a tremendous idiot. That's not a combination of words he’d usually associate himself with, but considering his grant master plan… Yep, he was a tremendous idiot.

Problem was, he had no other choice.

Cause however stupid Luke might be at the moment, his father would always be even worse. The messenger god truly seemed to believe that things were looking up for the gods. That their offspring were getting happier and that Camp-Half-Blood was finally at peace.

Luke just thought it was a bit sad that a god could be that naive. So what if Zeus is finally listening to their complaints? Everyone with brains knows that he has only agreed to let the demigods visit the winter solstice because he was being pressured to, and not because he gave a dam about the demigods. Only the most naïve demigods actually believed that they would get a chance to voice their complaints during the meeting.

So things were as bad as ever. The gods were still ignoring the biggest problem, and Kronos could still go back on his word and start collecting demigods for his army.

Hermes and Morpheus' efforts to change things hadn't worked out.

The dreams had been pointless.

Now it is all up to Luke. After agreeing to the deal, both Kronos and he had made their oaths. Kronos would steer clear from Camp Half-Blood, and Luke would give him the Lightning Bolt and the Helm of Darkness.

Not counting the research he'd done before swearing to the River Styx, that was only step one of Luke's idiotic plan.

And step two was approaching fast: the Winter Solstice.

_____________________

"Luke!"

Said demigod cringed when he heard his name being called. He had tried to make a quick exit to his cabin after the campfire.

"Annie," he greeted once the blonde had caught up with him. Then, quite dismissively, "did you need anything?"

Luke tried not to feel guilty when he saw a flash of hurt shoot across her face at the badly hidden dismissal.

"I… no. I just wanted to say how excited I am for the trip tomorrow."

"Oh, well, so am I. Really looking forward to seeing Olympus, yeah. If that's all, then-"

"Wait, Luke." Annabeth sighed, looking far too serious for someone her age. "Actually, that’s not all. I know I probably shouldn't get involved, but Percy is my friend, too. He's really bad at hiding his feelings, as I'm sure you know." Annabeth seemed to be struggling for words. "The point is, I can tell that he's sad. He misses you, Luke. You two were so close, but now… it's not my business to know what happened, but as I said, Percy's my friend. And so are you. So as a friend, I am asking you to at least talk things over with him. Maybe you could both use some reassurance that your friendship isn’t over and done with. Or, in the worst case, at least give him so closure."

Mixed feelings ran through him as he listened to the little girl. There was no way he could explain to Percy why he had been so busy. What with trying to keep the unclaimed demigods on his side (not the god’s specifically, just Luke’s), and fending of Kronos' attempts to completely invade his mind, he hadn't had much time left to spend on Percy. What must Percy have gone through? Luke suddenly felt guilt stir up in him. Of course he had been doing it for the greater good, but he should have at least made a bigger effort to spend time with Percy.

"Annie, you're completely right, as always. Know what, I'll wait for him in cabin three for us to talk."

The stern grey eyes lit up with relief. "Thank the gods, Luke," she exclaimed as she moved to hug him.

"I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

She let go. "Yeah, of course. I can't believe I'll finally get to see Olympus! I wonder who designed the buildings…" Luke left her there, trailed of in her thoughts of golden arches and marble decorations.

Luke didn't have to wait long for Percy to show up.

"Luke?" the smaller one timidly called out upon seeing him. "You're here?"

He nodded with a sheepish smile, feeling guilty again at the slightly surprised tone. He gestured for Percy to sit next to him on the bed.

"Look, Percy. I know I've not been a good friend these last months. I'm sorry. I promise that everything will be solved tomorrow.” 

"Tomorrow? At the Winter Solstice?" Percy question. “Are you going to suggest changes to the camp? Is that what you’ve been doing?”

"Not exactly, but it’s part of it. I'll explain it another time. But Percy… Just because I haven't always been by your side, doesn’t mean that I haven’t seen how much you've grown. Percy, you're special. You've got a big future ahead of you, and I want to help you. That said, I've got a gift for you."

"A gift? Luke, you didn't have to."

"It was actually meant for your birthday, but now I know for sure that you're ready." Luke reached into his pocket and retrieved the ball pen. With a big grin, he said: "Happy belated birthday, Percy."

Percy hesitantly took the pen. "Gee, thanks Luke. You shouldn't have…"

A fond laugh escaped Luke's mouth upon seeing Percy's confused expression. "Don't worry Perce, it's not just a pen. I’m sure you’ll find out for yourself soon enough.”

“What do you mean by that?” Percy laughed. “Stop talking in riddles.”

“Okay, one little hint.” He grinned. “What I said about you becoming the best swordsman the other day, I was wrong. I’d forgotten that you’d be second best to me,” Luke joked.

“Oh just you wait, one day I’ll win from you,” Percy grinned, already having a suspicion what the pen could be. But how did it work…

Luke laughed, though he actually believed it to be true. “I bet you will do great as the second best swordsman… though if I’m gone, that would make you the best.”

“Gone?” Percy repeated, his voice unreadable. His good mood had evaporated. “You can’t go... Go where? What do you mean ‘gone’? Luke, please tell me what you’ve been doing all on your own. Are you leaving us?”

Luke cursed himself for that slip. He didn’t know how to reply to that. Luke wasn’t planning on returning, but he couldn’t tell Percy that. Yet, he didn’t have it in himself to outright lie to him. “I don’t want to leave camp, Percy.”

“But you’re going to.” It wasn’t posed as a question.

“Nothing’s certain.”

“What’s going to happen tomorrow?” Percy demanded.

“I am truly sorry, Perseus, but I can’t tell you.”

“Why can’t you just say?” he shouted. “You can’t just go off by yourself like that, you’ve got friends here. People who actually care, and you’ve been cutting them out of your life!” His eyes were like a stormy sea, his words a giant tidal wave that swept over Luke and hit him where it hurt. 

Luke had the sinking realization that this could really be the end of their friendship. All those months Luke had just assumed that when this was done, they’d end things as friends. Percy had proven to be as unpredictable as ever. But Luke had to try one last time, figuratively extending a hand, he said: “Trust me for one more day.”

“How can I trust you anymore when you won’t even talk to me?”

Luke flinched. “Percy, please. Think of all that we’ve done together, in those dreams, but also in real-life. Isn’t that worth just one more day?”

“Fine.”

______________________

_Mount Olympus, night of the Winter Solstice_

Percy was a little disappointed. He hadn’t really had any expectations in mind, but the trip had frankly been a bit boring so far. Chiron had led them on a tour around the mountain, which had been amazing. Especially Annabeth loved it. Even Percy had to agree that it was beautiful, but it felt like there was something missing from the trip.

After the tour, they were invited to join the gods for the Winter Solstice meeting they held. Al the Olympians plus Hades were there.

Though it was a relief when they were told to go to bed, halfway through when things were getting heated between Percy’s father and Zeus. Percy had decided then that he didn’t like those meetings much. It only consisted of the gods sitting on their thrones, shouting at each other while the demigods had to sit on the floor and listen. Percy knew that some demigods had expected that they could also speak up during the meeting, but apparently the Gods hadn’t even thought of that. They hadn’t even addressed the demigods a single time. His dad had barely glanced at him! Whatever they were discussing, it didn’t seem to have been resolved by the time Chiron told the campers that it was bedtime.

The demigods were allowed to stay on Mount Olympus for the night, so they all got assigned their own room. It was the first after a long time any of them had slept in a room of their own.

Percy didn’t like it. The bedroom felt way too empty with no one to talk to. He tossed and he turned, but he couldn’t fall asleep. He wasn’t tired or comfortable enough, and his mind was still thinking about Luke’s words from the day before.

If Luke had spoken the truth, tomorrow was going to be a much better day. He really wished that Luke could be trusted, but he wasn’t sure about anything anymore. Ever since Percy’s birthday, there had been this… air hanging round Luke. He felt more powerful, older and… dangerous. Almost like he wasn’t just Luke anymore, but something more. Something bad.

Deciding there was no way he could get to sleep, Percy got out of bed and silently opened the door. The hallway was empty. Percy had no destination in mind, though he had a feeling that he wasn’t supposed to be outside on his own. He felt in his blue pj’s pocket, feeling reassured when he found the sword that Luke had given him.

Luke. Maybe he couldn’t sleep either. No, scratch that, Percy knew for sure that Luke would still be awake.

Which of these doors could lead to Luke? They all looked the same, and Percy hadn’t paid attention when the rooms were being assigned. If there was one thing Percy did have, it was the worst luck possible, so he couldn’t rely on that. Fortunately, he’d always had good instincts. Picking a door that felt okay, he knocked. Hearing no reply, he meant to walk away, but something stopped him: a gut feeling. Something was wrong.

He carefully nudged the door open, praying that it wasn’t someone else’s room. The room was empty, untouched. If this was indeed Luke’s room, the older demigod hadn’t even set foot here.

With a frown, Percy closed the room again. He was just being paranoid, right? He should go back to bed.

Needless to say, he didn’t do that. Instead, he went searching for his friend. Despite Chiron’s tour, Percy didn’t know his way around Olympus. Neither did Luke, probably. Maybe he was just looking for his father? Percy had no other lead to go upon, so he started off by walking the way back to the throne room.

Olympus was beautiful, maybe even more so in the dark with the Greek fire lighting the way. Percy felt very grateful for Annabeth’s excited chatter on their way to the bedrooms, for she’d pointed out all the landmarks that she’d found beautiful, which included almost everything. Thanks to her detailed gushing over architecture, Percy was able to navigate his way back to the Throne Room.

Even before entering, Percy could tell that the meeting was over. Otherwise he would have heard the thunderous voices from afar. Standing in front of the impressive doors, Percy was unsure whether or not he was allowed to enter without supervision. Before he got the chance to make up his mind, however, a girl opened the door. She seemed to be roughly the same age as Percy. He had never seen her before, so she couldn’t be one of the visiting demigods. Besides, something told him that she wasn’t a demigod at all. He felt a sudden calm in her presence, and the worry he had felt before, disappeared.

She smiled, honest, kind and… warm. Percy couldn’t help but smile back, mesmerized. 

“Come inside, it’s warmer there,” she beckoned him. He nodded his thanks.

The throne room had looked so intimidating in the daylight, with all the gods sitting there. Now that they were gone, the atmosphere had undergone a change. It felt like a home. The flickering flames of the heart provided the room with light and warmth.

Percy wanted to ask who she was and if she had seen Luke, but he also didn’t want to disturb the peaceful silence. He had just made up his mind to ask her, when she spoke up first. “I shall not keep you here any longer than necessary. Luke is hiding in the gardens. But before you go, let me offer you some free advice. Destinies can change. It may not always look like you have a choice, but you do. Just remember that home is where the heart is.”

“I’m not sure what you mean,” Percy admitted.

She shook her head, smiling. “You will understand when the moment is there. I feel confident you will do the right thing. Now go, Perseus Jackson. Go save your friend.”

_________________________

Things were going too easy for Luke. After Chiron had left them all alone in their rooms, he’d doubled back to the throne room and waited for the gods to leave. 

After they’d gone, he simply walked into the throne room and put the weapons in his bag. They really should have been more careful with them. It was like leaving two nuclear bombs lying around on a park bench.

Oh well, Luke had no problem with things going smoothly for a change. Step two, completed.

Now comes the scary part. Luke didn’t want Kronos to get the weapons, but he also needed the gods to acknowledge that Kronos is a real threat and that today could have gone wrong. This only served as a wake up call. Unfortunately, this meant that Luke had to stay hidden from Kronos _and_ the Olympians.

Without checking his surroundings, Luke had fled from the room. From all the books he read over the months, he had been able to draw up a rough map op Olympus. If the books were right, the gardens should be a perfect hiding place. They lay on the same side of the mountain as the throne room and, funny enough, there was a very convenient labyrinth, courtesy of Demeter.

Luke felt confident that he could hide himself and the lost symbols of powers for a night. That should be enough time for the gods to realize that the situation was getting serious. If this didn’t work, then he really didn’t know if there was any hope left of the gods changing their ways and fixing the problems at camp.

No, Luke couldn’t think like that. This had to work.

He entered the maze. Getting himself lost was the easy part. Staying put was the hard one. All the anxiousness that had been building up from the moment he said yes to Kronos, suddenly caught up with him. What if there was no loophole in their deal? Luke knew that with every minute that he spent in the maze, he could be breaking the oath that he had sworn.

Kronos wanted him to steal the bolt and helm, and hand it over to him without telling anyone. The thing he hadn’t asked was for Luke to do it as fast as he could. So in theory he could wait for however long he wants to, as long as he plans to give it to him in due time. At least, Luke was hoping that this wouldn’t count as breaking the oath. But Kronos certainly won’t be delighted in the least once he realizes that he’s been played.

So at the moment, Luke wasn’t breaking his oath yet, but he knew it was only a matter of time before he had to. There was no way in Hades that he was going to let Kronos lay his fingers upon those weapons. Consequently, this also meant that there was no way Luke could keep his oath.

Sacrifices had to be made.

_______________

Once he’d found the gardens, Percy felt like a seaweed brain for having missed them in the first place. What had first looked like a huge building was now clearly a wall, woven with things that looked like grain crops on steroids. Percy blamed the dark. Why did all the epic things have to happen in the dark?

Tracing the cereal wall, he’d eventually managed to find the entrance, though he couldn’t tell how much time had gone by. Was there a chance that Luke had already come out of hiding and went back to his room? Going back didn’t really sound that bad at the moment, Percy thought. Still, there was a chance that Luke was still there, hiding for whatever reason. Percy had to try.

So he entered the labyrinth. And quickly learned that he hated them. Having no clue where he was supposed to go, he also couldn’t tell if he was going the right way. The girl at the heart had said that Luke was hiding, so Percy figured that simply calling his name wasn’t going to work.

Percy remembered a story his mum used read to him, about The Labyrinth and The Minotaur… Okay, no thinking about Minotaurs now. Not the right time _or_ place.

It took him a while to figure out that the maze was probably alive. Obviously, the cereal plants were alive, but they were also moving. Changing place. Creating doors where there used to be only walls. In any other situation living walls would have been a nightmare to navigate with, but Percy had this odd feeling that they were actually working in his favor. Eventually, Percy realized that the walls were steering him, changing all around him so he could get where he wanted to be. Where he needed to be. Percy decided to just accept this strange fact and he let the labyrinth guide him.

When he found Luke it came as a shock to both of them.

“Luke!” Percy exclaimed in relief, though it quickly turned into worry. “Are you okay? What are you doing here?”

Luke took a moment to recover, though he still sounded uncharacteristically nervous. “I’m not hurt, if that’s what you mean. Shouldn’t you be sleeping?”

“Shouldn’t you?” Percy shot back, not liking the fact that Luke was still avoiding questions.

“Really Percy, you shouldn’t be here. It’s too dangerous.” Luke scanned the, fortunately empty, pathways.

“If it’s dangerous, then you shouldn’t be doing this alone,” Percy insisted.

“I don’t need help, you’ll only get in the way,” Luke bit back.

Percy was a bit startled by his hard tone. “Luke, if you just tell me what’s going on, I can-“

“I don’t want you here, Percy!” Luke shouted, unable to keep it in any longer. “I don’t want you to see-“ he abruptly fell into silence.

Percy frowned. Luke was hiding something. Scratch that, Luke was hiding many things. Looking around, Percy was able to find one of them. Even in the dark, he could spot the golden bag lying forgotten on the ground where Luke had been hiding. With two quick strides, Percy was on it before Luke could stop him. He emptied the bag, spilling its contents on the ground.

He couldn’t believe his eyes. His brain must have processed it wrong. Or his eyes are seeing things that aren’t there. Percy didn’t know what went wrong, but something must have because there was no way that Zeus’ Lightning Bolt and Hades’ Helm of Darkness were lying on the ground at their thief, Luke’s feet. Every bit of that scenario was wrong.

“Percy…” he heard Luke saying, but he wasn’t listening. 

He was still trying to tie his head around the fact that Luke held these objects in his possession, though he clearly wasn’t meant to have them. Stolen. But why?

“Percy, I know how it must look, but…” Luke trailed off.

Percy let out a sharp laugh, bordering on manic. “What’s happening to you, Luke? Why are you doing this? These are weapons, what did you want them for?”

Percy really wanted to give his friend the benefit of doubt, but after all those months of him acting strange and detached…

“Percy…” Luke said for a third time. “It may not look like it, but I am doing it for you and for the others.”

Fed up with all the unanswered questions, Percy pulled out his pen. The one Luke had gifted him with, now aimed at him.

“Did you steal those weapons?” Percy asked, awkwardly pointing the pen at him as a threat.

Luke tensed, but didn’t draw his own sword. Percy didn’t notice him inching a bit closer to said weapons, though. “Yes, but not for myself.”

“For whom then?” Percy asked, whilst trying to figure out how his sword actually worked.

“I… I’m not supposed to say.”

“Is he or she bad?”

“Er… well, I suppose so, yes.”

“Then why are you doing this?” Percy uncapped his weapon.

“Because I have to.”

“Why?”

“…I can’t say.”

With that, Luke finally drew his sword, Backbiter, and made to but Percy in the head. Percy’s quick reflexes saved him, though. Percy pushed down on the betrayal he felt, throwing all his anger into the fight. He immediately realized that Luke wasn’t even really trying, but that realization only made him more frustrated. He had given Luke his trust, only to catch him doing… this!

 

_{A half-blood of the eldest gods}_

Luke didn’t want to hurt Percy. He had tried to knock him unconscious, because he didn’t want Percy to see him when… when the Styx would punish him. Finding a hole in his defense, Luke gave him a kick to the chest, making him fall to the ground with a groan.

Luke scooped up the weapons, putting them back in the bag. With one last glance at Percy, Luke ran. In the back of his mind, he though he could hear dark laughter following him wherever he went. Instinctively, he knew it to be Kronos, taunting him for even thinking he could escape his fate. As son of the Messenger God, it was only ironic that he would be the one having to play delivery guy with two of the world’s most powerful items. Well, kronos could stuff it.

 

_{Shall reach Olympus against all odds}_

 

The Olympians had been woken up. If it had only been Luke Castellan missing, no one would have noticed, probably. Thing was, Perseus Jackson was also been gone from his room, as Poseidon had found out when he came to visit his son. All the Olympians were aware of the prophecy, though none had imagined that it would come to fulfillment this soon. Which was why they were all gathered in the Throne Room again, squabbling like little kids, when the lightning thief came rushing in.

“Luke! Where have you been?” Hermes asked surprised.

“Have you seen Percy?” Poseidon added hastily.

Luke held up a hand so he could catch up with his breath. “I have come to warn you.”

 

_{And while the world lies asleep}_

 

“HOW DARE YOU MORTAL EVEN TOUCH MY LIGHTNING BOLT!” Zeus boomed, sounding even louder still in the silent night. 

“It was the only way to make you listen,” Luke explained again. ”Let’s just say, I’ve come to bargain.”

“BARGAIN!”

“YES, BARGAIN.” Luke shouted back. That gained him the attention he wanted. Any mortal who dared to scream at the King of the Gods, was worth listening to, right?

Unnoticed by anyone but Hestia, Percy entered the throne room. Observing what was going, he wisely kept silent and went to stand by the heart.

“Do you have any idea how much danger we’re all in? Kronos is active. He came to me in a dream, asking for my help. Didn’t give me a choice, really. For the past four months he’s been in my head, and none of you noticed a thing. Even worse: I’m not the only one he’d gotten into contact with. All the unclaimed campers would’ve been happy to do exactly as he told them to, but he didn’t want them. He wanted me. So we made oaths. For the moment, you’re all safe because I made him swear not to do anything until I hand these-“ he held the bag up, “to him. In return, I swore to do it. It was an oath on the river Styx.”

 

_{The hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap}_

 

“Traitor!” Ares screamed at Luke, his spear ready to be thrown. Hermes stopped him. “Don’t you dare lay a finger on my son!"

“He’s helping Kronos! He said it himself!”

“It is an oath that I’ve always intended to break,” Luke hastily admitted, half expecting the Styx to just kill him off now. It was pure luck that he’d survived so long. He was no fool, though. He knew that the cursed water was coming for his soul. “Instead of doing what’s easy, I devised a plan. I thought that if I could just steal them, and use them for bargaining, at least the others would not have to suffer for the time being. And even _you_ can’t still be in denial about whether or not Kronos is back. He is. That’s what I’ve come to warn you about. You need to start preparing for war.”

 

_{A single choice shall end his days}_

 

“So what’s it going to be? Are you willing to listen to my demands? Cause the thing is, you don’t have to deny me, just to pay me back for this. I’m going to die anyway, so why not just listen?”

Zeus didn’t like the demigod, but he really wanted his lightning bolt back. Besides, even he could respect the sacrifice that had been made. “Fine,” he huffed. “List your demands.”

“From now on, I want you to properly recognize the children of the gods… all the children, of _all_ the gods. No more undetermined children. Secondly…” Luke began listing all the changes to be made, in order to preserve the future of Camp-Half-blood, and Olympus.

 

_{Olympus to preserve or raze}_

 

“In the name of the Council, we swear by the River Styx to grant your request.” 

The other gods muttered assent. Thunder boomed, shaking the throne room. The deal was made.

“Now that that’s done, give me my bolt back.”

“I’d like my helmet back too, yes,” Hades piped up.

“Wait!” Hermes jumped out of his throne, rushing over to his son. Before Luke knew it, his father had put his arms around him in a tight hug. After the initial stiffness, Luke let all the tenseness ease away as he embraced his father one last time.

“I’m sorry my son, I tried to save you but it didn’t work,” Hermes whispered. He had only altered the events, though the result was the same. Even the combined efforts of Morpheus and him hadn’t been enough to keep Luke from dying.

“Don’t worry about it, father. After all, you did manage to give me a true friend.”

With a sigh, Luke let go of the god, turning around to said friend, who had remained at the heart.

“Come here, Perce.” He opened his arms.

The younger demigod practically leapt into them, still in shock. He didn’t know if he should be feeling relieved that Luke hadn’t betrayed him, or just sad because he was dying. He felt dazed, muted. The situation hadn’t really dawned on him yet. For now, he just knew that he really didn’t want Luke to go.

“Luke…” There was so much he wanted to say, but he couldn’t get them out.

“You don’t have to say anything Percy, I know,” Luke reassured. “I guess I’ll see you in Elysium, then?”

Percy forced himself to grin, just for Luke. “Of course you will.”

“Right,” said Luke. “I’ll be waiting for you.”

____________________

Hestia watched everything play out. Once it was done, once the stolen items had been returned and the hero’s soul reaped, she knew she needed to speak to the boy. After all, there was no need for unnecessary grieving. However, knowing that a certain messenger god would also want to hear the news, she decided it would be best to just let them all know.

She coughed for attention, which was immediately bestowed upon her. “After the recent events, I have seen it my duty to inform you that am alteration has been made to the prophecy." 

Had it been anyone but Hestia speaking, this declaration would have been followed by chaos and disbelief. But the Olympians knew better than to doubt her.

“Apparently,” she went on, “when two gods decided to meddle with the lives of the demigods, trying to save a son, they ended up changing fate. Apollo? As the god of prophecy, you should do the honors.”

“Well, of course, Auntie,” he smirked dazzlingly, though even he was struggling with the concept of a rewritten prophecy. An abrupt change came over him as his eyes glowed a bright green, with green smoke coming out of his mouth.

 

“A half-blood of the eldest gods

Shall reach Olympus against all odds

And while the world lies asleep

The hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap

A single choice shall end his days

Olympus to preserve or raze"

 

But where all the gods, minus Hestia, expected Apollo to stop, he continued:

 

“Only friendship, tested by sacrifice

Can allow the hero to once more rise”

 

Luke Castellan, demigod son of Hermes, the lightning thief, Percy’s friend, the hero. 

Percy was the first to break out of his stupor. He looked at Hestia with renewed hope. “Does this mean…”

“The time has come, Perseus Jackson. Go save your friend.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short epilogue for those who want it:
> 
> In my mind, Percy will succeed in somehow brining Luke back. Also, the gods will have been warned of Kronos’ return in time for them to start preparing for the war. Because they were better prepared than in the books, the demigods survived and Kronos was defeated. The end.


End file.
